The Unicorn Club
by AmazingGraceless
Summary: Unrest is at Ilvermorny, with the fierce Quodpot rivalry that results in an attack on the school's golden girl, Aideen Graves Scholt. But as she investigates into the attack, she becomes involved with conspiracy, dark magic, and naturally, unicorns.
1. Prologue

"Right this way," Prefect Finn Graves Scholt said, beckoning first-years forward into the entrance hall. Headmaster Fontaine was very clear on his intent for the Sorting to hurry up this year. The class of 2014 was the largest Ilvermorny had in thirteen years. While the Sorting was more efficient here than in Hogwarts, the Wand Ceremony was going to be a pain.

As the next of the Knight Buses unloaded, a lanky blonde witch who towered over the other first-years approached, the brim of her hat turned upwards to the sky. Finn smiled, recognizing the second of his four sisters in the crowd.

"Good luck, Dee," he said as she passed.

She gave him a nervous smile as she continued past him into the hall. Finn remembered his own first time, seeing the crimson wallpaper, with black silhouettes of creatures on the wall, the stone pillars, and the skylights welcoming in the setting sun.

He wasn't quite as nervous as Aideen was, or Freya. Probably because he was the eldest, and as such didn't have any family anxiously watching to make sure he got into Wampus, as he was supposed to.

Finn knew his sister would get in, though. He knew his sisters, and they were all warriors, in their own ways.

Freya was the most traditional, and resembled their mother so closely, with both dark hair and dark eyes, and was like the thunderstorm that raged the night she was born. She was strong, hard, and with an erratic temper, a force to be reckoned with. She was always doing something. To relax was a foreign concept.

Aideen was like the ocean— mostly a calming source, maternal almost in how she treated others, and not as showy as Freya or Belle, but her brand of heroism and courage was still there, if difficult to see. It was like the waves eroding a cliff over several years. To many, she didn't seem the warrior type, but Finn knew his sister.

Belladonna, often called Belle, was like a raging wildfire. Out of control, unpredictable, and filled with raw power, she liked challenges, and was certainly a fighter. She was always in a fight with one of the other neighborhood children. But like a fire, there was something charismatic about her destructive nature.

Rionach was the baby of the family, and she was like ice. She was cool, calm, and collected, and impressive in her few raw displays.

Finn's reverie was broken by a sharp elbow to the ribs. "Ow!"

"Like that hurt, you big baby," Christine Booth teased. Despite being on the Quodpot Team for Thunderbird, the greatest of Wampus's rivals, Christine and Finn had maintained a long-standing friendship, fueled with bickering and the occasional short-lived duel.

"You don't have to elbow me that hard, I haven't gotten on my broom for the season yet!" Finn cried.

"Hurry along," said Professor Calderon-Dean. "We've got to get through a lot of students."

"Yes sir," Christine and Finn chorused. They hurried off, and had to separate to sit with their houses. Finn couldn't help but steal glances at Christine when he wasn't glancing down to see if his sister had come up yet. She'd grown prettier over the summer, with her sweet blonde hair, and her figure becoming really developed.

"Quit eying her," Freya hissed. "Dee's up."

Indeed, the little blonde witch had stepped on the Gordian Knot. After a moment, the Wampus roared, just like Finn expected— but then the Pukwudgie shot its arrow.

Finn felt as if the air had been knocked out of him. Freya reached for his hand and squeezed it so tight, her fingernails were digging into his wrist.

Aideen stared up at them, clearly bewildered. She hesitated a single moment before replying.

"Wampus."

Finn let out a sigh of relief, but Freya gripped his wrist tighter. Her dark eyes were as relentless as the rain on the night she was born.

"We can never tell Mom and Dad she was almost chosen for Pukwudgie," Freya said. "Especially when she didn't show any magic till a week before her birthday. Add this, and they might kick her out."

Finn nodded, remembering the family opinion on Pukwudgies. Their father, Abraham Scholt, had always rambled about how the Pukwudgies were weak-willed softies with no real courage, and their mother, Lavender Graves, always talked about the sniveling pushovers the Pukwudgie girls were in her year. And from what Finn observed, the same could be said for his year.

Aideen already had one foot out the door before she levitated her favorite doll. Finn had overheard his parents making arrangements to pass Aideen off to a No-Maj family if she turned out to be a No-Maj herself.

This might end for sure in her expulsion from the family.

* * *

In the Opening Feast, everyone was to sit at long tables, like at Hogwarts. It was always strange for Finn, not seeing the normal round tables that were scattered all around the Dining Hall.

He and Freya sat at the Wampus table, saving a seat between them for Aideen, who exited fairly early, brandishing a wand.

"Cedar and horned serpent horn!" Aideen cried, showing it off. Finn thought her wand very plain, with an undefined handle and a surprising lack of marks down the side, the only extraordinary thing about her wand being the pearl attached at the end.

Freya dropped her voice low. "We can't tell Mom or Dad about Pukwudgie, ever."

"I know," Aideen said, reluctant to stop talking about her wand.

Satisfied that that had been resolved, Finn stole a glance at the Thunderbird table and found Christine staring back at him.


	2. Chapter I Three Years Later

A note shaped like a bird fluttered onto Aideen Graves Scholt's desk during Charms. She glanced up to see that her uncle, Professor Scholt, was indeed distracted with arguing with Kyla Grimsditch over grades, before opening it.

 _Why do you refuse the Dragon-Eye's invitation?_

Aideen gave a big sigh and crumpled the note. Her sister had led the student organization, the Dragon-Eye Coven, for years now. She didn't want her sister there, and last Aideen knew of, the most recent person to invite her had ended up in the nurse's office for a week.

Besides, there were more important matters for Aideen, like the Quodpot match on Thursday.

It would be the legendary match of Thunderbird versus Wampus. The long-time Quodpot enemies had been known to be violent in the buildup to the match. Most of it had to do with the Dragon-Eye Coven.

Nothing had ever been confirmed, or that would've been shut down centuries ago, but the best of Thunderbird's players always ended up in the hospital wing with no memory of how they got there, and Wampus students were on a "guard duty" despite rarely speaking to Aideen otherwise.

Then there were other matters, like Quidditch, because there would be a match the weekend after that, and then practicing for the various academic competitions she had coming up. Even if she put competitions aside, there was still regular academics to worry about.

Another note hit Aideen in the shoulder blade, and she whirled around her seat, looking for who might've thrown it. She shook her head before picking up this bird. She opened it to see another note in the same handwriting.

 _You're a brilliant student, Aideen. Surely you'd do well among our ranks_.

Aideen glanced back to the Wampuses and shook her head before taking out her quill and writing a response.

 _I'm busy. Sorry._

She re-folded the note, and it fluttered off. Aideen looked back to her Charms textbook and questions, and finished answering them. She headed to the front of class, practicing that calm and confident walk that she lacked, in comparison with her sisters and brother, and turned in the paper.

Professor Scholt payed her no attention as both she and Kyla returned to their seats. Aideen pulled out her small agenda and checked off a few items, since the remaining class period could be used to complete homework. She wanted to get as much as she could out of the way, since she had a meeting with the Potions Club and then a Quodpot practice after school.

It was lucky she did so, for when the clocktower chimed four times to signal class dismissal for the day, at least four students leapt out of their seats and surrounded Aideen. She bit her lip, telling herself that they all meant well. She slowly and carefully packed up her backpack, and slung it over her shoulders.

"I need to get my broom and supplies from the dormitories," Aideen announced. "You wouldn't mind us making a quick trip there before heading to the Potions classroom?"

There was a murmur of assent, and they left the classroom, all of them remaining right around Aideen, wands out and glaring at any Thunderbirds who crossed their paths. They crossed the courtyards to where the Wampus tower was located. Once inside the main castle, they approached a statue of an actual wampus, cast in gold.

The leader of the students, whose name Aideen couldn't quite remember, tapped the golden plaque on the base of the pedestal.

"Here, kitty, kitty," the leader said. The wampus statue roared and the base rose to reveal the door to a staircase into the first level of the Wampus Tower. The leader stepped aside, and gestured for Aideen to go first. She smiled and did so, entering the warm common room. She spared a glance at the wall of trophies, some of which were dedicated to her. She moved past the circular tables and practically ran up the oak staircase and into her dormitory.

She strode across the room, ignoring Kyla's dark eyes watching her as she emptied out the contents of her backpack into the treasure chest at the end of her bed. All Wampus students were gifted with them, and they held an amazing amount of items. Aideen pulled out her Quodpot robes and her broomstick, then put the clothes into her backpack. She shut the trunk, and heard her cat, Cress, mewling at her.

"Hello, Cress," Aideen said as she stroked her tabby's fur. "I've got to get going, can't be late to Potions Club."

She patted her cat's head, feeling a little guilty before dashing down the stairs, broom in hand, to where her bodyguards were waiting.

"Ready to go," Aideen said, forcing that easygoing smile onto her face again.

When she entered into the Potions classroom, it was already warm from the burners having been on all day.

"Hello, Professor Calderon-Boot," Aideen said, waving to her professor as she headed to where her cauldron was stored. She glanced up to see the ghost of the Potions room, Solomon Bevin, reading over one of the Potions textbooks and attempting to vandalize it with a quill.

"What's wrong with the recipe this time?" Aideen asked as she pulled her cauldron out.

"The Draught lacks that you should smash open the bean with the flat of the knife, not slice it!" Solomon cried as he scribbled notes. "I can't believe the stupidity of this potion-maker!"

"Dejala, por favor," Professor Calderon-Boot said in a dry tone without looking up from the papers he was grading. The older ghost was a constant nuisance in the Potions room, and Professor Calderon-Boot only gave token resistance at this point.

Aideen looked around. "Where is everyone?"

"I don't know," Professor Calderon-Boot admitted. "Are you ready for the Inter-House Potioneering Competition?"

"I think so," Aideen admitted as she prepared her cauldron. "Is there any potion you'd like me to practice making?"

"No," Professor Calderon-Boot said. "Have some fun with it. I've got some papers to grade, and I know you've got that Quodpot game coming up."

"Yes, sir," Aideen said.

"Are you particularly stressed about this one?" Professor Calderon-Boot asked.

"I'm not, but in my opinion, the other Wampuses are losing their minds," Aideen said. She opened her book, and opened it to a Musicality Potion. She grinned and got to work, gathering the ingredients. "They've got a bodyguard squad surrounding me."

"Well, staff has had a difficult time keeping players safe during this game," Professor Calderon-Boot said. "I've already had to discipline a few students from your house for attempting to blow up a player's cauldron during class."

"Is it Demetria Lightwood?" Aideen asked, thinking of the second-year who'd made the team. While usually vivacious and bold, the girl had become very timid over the course of the week.

"Afraid so," Professor Calderon-Boot said. "Another's already in the hospital wing, no memories, naturally. The Dragon-Eye is being investigated for that one."

"Bet my sister loves that," Aideen muttered. The cauldron was beginning to bubble, but not boil.

"What Freya wants is inconsequential," Professor Calderon-Boot said, looking up from the papers. "She could learn to be more understanding about the charges."

Aideen shrugged. "Freya just doesn't like trouble."

"Ironic for how often she brings it," Professor Calderon-Boot said with a short. He folded his hands together. "I hear you two are having issues."

"Just a little sisterly rivalry," Aideen said, keeping her eyes trained on the cauldron. The water boiled at last, so Aideen began adding ingredients. "Nothing much to worry about, sir."

"Last I heard, she was the reason why you haven't been allowed in the Dueling Club, despite your skills," Professor Calderon-Boot said, his light green eyes giving off a piercing stare at Aideen.

"Freya just doesn't want me in her territory," Aideen said with a moment's hesitation. She stirred her potion. "I can respect that."

"But your brother and your sister were in the Dueling Club at the same time," Professor Calderon-Boot pointed out.

"I'd really rather not talk about this," Aideen said. "My sister's business is my sister's business."

Professor Calderon-Boot said nothing. "If there is any problem, Aideen, don't feel like you can't come to me."

"I doubt you can really do much with sisters, sir," Aideen said, a little more forcefully. "It's something we need to work out on our own."

"I see," Professor Calderon-Boot said, finally dropping the subject. He checked the watch. "The other students are running very late." He looked up, concerned. "I'd better go see if something is—"

Aideen then heard a loud explosion outside. She immediately turned off her burner and ran after Professor Calderon-Boot through the castle and into the major courtyard within the house towers and the clocktower, where a ghost dressed in Puritan wear was egging on a group of students, Wampuses and Thunderbirds according to the crests on their robes and markings on their sleeves.

Curses were being exchanged at rapid-fire, and students were fleeing left and right from the rubble.

"Abby, stop this!" Professor Calderon-Boot ordered. The Puritan woman simply glared at him.

"It's not my fault if a witch decides to attack another," Abigail Williams said. "I told them, wrath and envy are sins, but they wouldn't listen."

"We all know your charms are all over this," Professor Calderon-Boot said. He flicked his wand. "Begone, Abby!"

The ghost disappeared, and with another flick of his wand, the scene was frozen. The professor Vanished the curses, and set the students in motion again.

"I expected better from our students!" Professor Calderon-Boot bellowed. The students all cowered under Professor Calderon-Boot's piercing gaze. "Detention, all of you! One more toe out of line, and I swear I will cancel the game!"

Whispers filled the courtyard from the bystanders. Even Aideen felt a spike of panic. He couldn't cancel Quodpot, not now!

"To Headmaster Fontaine's office, now!" Professor Calderon-Boot shouted. Students scurried off, leaving just Professor Calderon-Boot and Aideen. The professor looked to Aideen with a renewed panic.

"Get to the locker rooms at once, stay out of the way of other students," Professor Calderon-Boot ordered. "I think your guard was part of that, and I want you where I know Proctor can keep an eye out for you."

"Thank you, sorry, Professor," Aideen squeaked as she pulled up her hood before scurrying off to the Quodpot locker rooms. She kept to the more isolated parts of the castle, not wanting to get in crossfires.

However, when she got to the locker rooms, there was a group of students standing outside. Aideen barely had time to scream.


	3. Chapter II The End of Quodpot

"This has gone way too far!"

"We can't just ban Quodpot, this isn't the players' fault—"

"It's only for the year— and Michael, I would have thought you'd know better—"

"Shh, might wake her up—"

"Might as well, ask her who did this to her—"

"Michael Fairchild, I swear to God—"

Aideen awoke to hearing the fierce whispers. She blinked her eyes open and was looking at the ceiling of the nurse's office. She frowned, unable to remember how she'd gotten there. Then, like a flash of lightning, came a surge of pain, all throughout her body. She sat up and saw, peeking through the bandages, her arm—

Aideen repressed the urge vomit, and forced herself to sit up. "What happened?"

Professor Calderon-Boot, Professor Fairchild, and Madam Downey all turned around to see Aideen. Professor Michael Fairchild, the Head of Wampus, sauntered forwards.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Professor Fairchild said, arms crossed over his chest.

Aideen frowned. "I don't remember."

"A Memory-Removal Charm," Professor Calderon-Boot said to Madam Downey as the exchanged glances. "Probably reversible."

"Do we really need to do this?" Madam Downey asked. "I saw some of the curses they had on her before I cleaned her up some. It was a very traumatic event."

"We need to know what happened," Professor Calderon-Boot said.

Professor Fairchild waved his wand over Aideen's forehead. He frowned. "Stupid kids. We won't be able to remove it."

"Then we have no choice but to cancel the Quodpot tournament this year," Professor Calderon-Boot said. "I said I would, so we'll go through with it, since we can't even punish the perpetrators specifically."

"This has happened every single year," Professor Fairchild said. "What's a little shenanigans? Are you just finally concerned because it's your favorite student to show to the other schools, this time?"

"No, it's because it's never happened on this scale before," Professor Calderon-Boot said.

"It's true," Madam Downey said. "There's never been this many kids in the office. We might have to expand to the Rebecca Nurse Memorial Hospital."

"Perhaps," Professor Calderon-Boot murmured. "I won't let this stand. Next year, we can try again, but the children need consequences for their actions."

"Quodpot is cancelled?" Aideen couldn't believe her ears. It felt as if her world had been turned upside down. She stretched out her hands to the sides of the hospital bed to make sure things were steady. "Just this game, right?"

Professor Fairchild gave a hardened glare at Professor Calderon-Boot. "No. For the season."

"The entire tournament was cancelled!" Aideen cried.

Professor Calderon-Boot adjusted the Gordian Knot pin on his robes. "I'm afraid we must, Aideen. We can't have students having mass duels in the courtyard over a sport. We simply can't."

"But I-" Aideen protested, but Professor Calderon-Boot put up a hand to stop her.

"I've already made my decision!" Professor Calderon-Boot's voice was like the abrasive soaps in the student bathrooms. His expression softened within a moment. "Get some rest, Aideen. You don't need to be anywhere."

With that, he and Professor Fairchild left the room, leaving Aideen with Madam Downey.

Madam Downey smiled at Aideen. "Come on, let me look at your arms. Tell me, how's Freya? Jonathan hasn't brought her around in a while."

"She's been busy with the Dragon-Eye Coven and the Dueling Club," Aideen said.

"Even during the summer?" Madam Downey asked. "Jonathan was so disappointed, she never came out after July!"

"Well, she wanted to get ahead on her studies," Aideen lied. "Mom wants us to do well."

"You'd think she'd relax," Madam Downey sighed as she checked over Aideen. She pulled a flask from her belt. "Take this. Some of those curses were nasty. And illegal."

"Thanks," Aideen said, taking the flask. Closing her fingers was difficult because of the painful yellow bumps all up and down her fingers. Aideen screwed her eyes shut and lifted the potion to her lips and swallowed.

Her fingers trembled as she dropped the empty flask into the sheets. Madam Downey retrieved it, and went to help Demetria Lightwood. Aideen sighed and lay back. She could see all sorts of nasty afflictions peaking out between bandages, and didn't want to know about the rest of it. She felt sick to her stomach.

After a few moments, a tall sixth-year with dark hair and a fierce gleam in her matching dark eyes entered.

"Freya," Aideen said, sitting up, a little nervous.

"I can't believe you, of all people, would get attacked by Thunderbirds," Freya huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You're the daughter of Aurors for crying out loud! You should be able to hold your own in a duel!"

"I'm not an Auror yet," Aideen reminded her, with a moment's hesitation. "And besides, it's not like I'd be welcomed in the Dueling Club—"

Freya sighed and rolled her eyes. "A perfect little witch like you shouldn't need it."

Aideen closed her eyes and silently counted to three. She couldn't get angry. She refused to. "I'm not as good of a duelist as you. You should know that."

There was a hint of satisfaction in Freya's voice. "I do, but nevertheless, if you're going to be an Auror, you need to do better than this."

Aideen hesitated. "What if I'm not suited to being an Auror? What if I'm more suited to Alchemy? Or perhaps being a teacher or future headmistress of Ilvermorny?"

Freya punched her lightly in the shoulder. "Are you sure one of those jinxes didn't rattle some things in the attic?"

"I mean, you and I know I do better in academic settings, and it's not like I wouldn't be accepted, not with my record—"

"You're supposed to be an Auror, in case you haven't forgotten," Freya said pointedly. Any trace of a smile was gone. Instead, the prim and proper sister that mimicked their mother so desperately appeared. "It is expected. Especially from the perfect daughter."

And now we're back to square one, Aideen thought.

"If you'd like to teach me to duel, you can," Aideen said. "I'm going to have some free time, now that Quodpot's been cancelled."

"It's my place," Freya said, stiffening. "You've got everything else, you won't take Dueling from me!"

"I just—" Aideen searched for the words to use, but felt helpless. "Sorry, I won't mention it again."

Freya relaxed her posture, saying nothing. "I'm sorry this happened, Dee. Do you know who did this?"

"I don't, a Memory Charm was used," Aideen said. "Professor Fairchild already tried."

Freya's eyebrows knitted together in concentration. "Don't worry, I'll take care of it."

Aideen decided not to press the matter. She lay back in the bed, as Freya set on the bedside table a box of candy.

"Thought you might want these," Freya said. "And Finn will be sending something. Belle is making a card that might have fireworks in it. Just warning you, since she likes to get a little crazy with her card-making."

"Thanks," Aideen said. She sighed once more. "I was looking forward to this year."

"It's just one less thing," Freya said, looking down at her hands. "Nothing you need to worry about, anyway, you're still the star of the school. The perfect little golden girl."

Freya stood up. "I have to go speak to the Dragon-Eye Coven."

She turned to leave, and Aideen considered pleading with her to come back, to assure her she wasn't perfect. But the thought of that secret coming out made her throat close up, and her hands began to shake. No one could know about that. Ever.

* * *

Throughout the rest of the weekend, cards were stacked on the small bedside table, including one that had been sent from Belladonna that released colorful fireworks into the nurse's office. The team had collectively sent a nice one, but no one really visited until Sunday.

As soon as visiting hours opened, a petite witch with brown hair dressed in loose, dark clothing appeared, holding a card and a small box. Aideen recognized her immediately as Saga Twelvetrees, a Thunderbird in her History of Magic Creatures who held the best review sessions.

"Hi," she said, giving a little wave and a buck-toothed smile. "I thought I'd bring these."

"Thanks," Aideen replied, accepting the card. On the outside was a painted unicorn with a strange device sticking out of its mouth and a bundle on its head. Get well soon, the inside said. Signed, Saga.

"And I thought you might like this," Saga added, thrusting the box at her. Aideen accepted it, not sure what to say.

"Um, thanks," Aideen said. She accepted the box and opened it to see a button with the Wampus crest on it. The Wampus roared and twitched its tail.

"Did you make this yourself?" Aideen asked, looking up to Saga. "This is beautiful. Thank you. You didn't need to go to all this trouble for me."

Saga shrugged, looking bored at the comment. "You are the person who's been the nicest to me. Out of anyone here. Besides the Unicorn Club, I mean."

"Really?" Aideen had never thought herself close to Saga Twelvetrees. "I bet a lot of people are nice to you during your review sessions."

"Only then, when they want something," Saga said, looking down at her hands in their fingerless gloves.

"You don't deserve that," Aideen said with a frown. "Why would anyone be rude to you?"

Saga gave a bitter laugh. "Like you don't know. No one trusts a Twelvetrees or a half-blood, and I'm both."

Aideen shrugged. "Rappaport was decades ago. I see no reason to care about it now."

"You and I both know that's not how things are done, not here," Saga said.

Aideen looked at Saga, eye-to-eye. "I don't care about the world's way. I care about my way."

Saga nodded, as if she understood what Aideen was really saying. "I hope you feel better."

"I'm almost there," Aideen said. "I know my sister's planning on retaliating on whoever did this, in your House. Just to warn you."

Saga frowned. "This isn't Thunderbird's style, and we know it."

"I know it's mostly the Dragon-Eye brand of justice, but—"

"Do you even know who attacked you?" Saga asked.

"No, I can't remember," Aideen said. "And the teachers couldn't reverse the Memory Charm."

"Then a student, or at least, a student who wasn't doing some serious magic, couldn't have done it," Saga said. "And some of those curses used on you, those are illegal, no?"

"They are," Aideen admitted. "At least, that's what Madam Downey said."

"Interesting," Saga murmured. "That's not Quodpot-level stuff, then."

"Are you sure?" Aideen asked. "Maybe you should go to Fontaine with this—"

"Not yet," Saga said, and she leaned in. "I was thinking about investigating ourselves. After all, it could just be kids who learned some jinxes they weren't supposed to. But I've got a few ideas, how to find out."

"You do?"

Footsteps echoed down the hall where Madam Downey kept the medical potions. Saga looked from there to Aideen.

"The Unicorn Club meets on Tuesdays after school, around the time Quodpot practices would normally be going," Saga said. "Meet us in the old Sayre classroom."

By the time Madam Downey reached the bed, Saga was gone.


	4. Chapter III Rionach

When Aideen left the nurse's office, it was off to class midway through Monday. She knew now that she had plenty of time to catch up. Quodpot was only one activity— yet as Aideen checked her calendar, crossing off dates and scribbling in new ones, she realized how open her days were now. So much time had been devoted to Quodpot over all else.

 _But maybe, if we could prove the attack wasn't because of Quodpot, we could get it back,_ Aideen thought.

 _But what if it's true that dark wizards attacked me?_ she wondered. _Could they be the same people that took Rionach?_

Aideen's hands began to shake and she felt as if she were going to heave any minute. She looked up to where Professor Hastings was lecturing and raised her hand.

"Yes, Aideen?" Professor Hastings asked, bright and perky as she always was when a student raised their hand.

"I don't feel well," Aideen said. "Can I use the bathroom pass?"

"Yes," Professor Hastings said, her posture stiffening. "Next time, just take it."

"Sorry, Professor Hastings," Aideen mumbled as she ran for the door. Luckily, the bathroom was nearby.

* * *

This was supposed to be Rionach's first year at Ilvermorny. The last of the Graves-Scholts was supposed to finally join the crowd. Aideen remembered how excited Rionach was. She stole several of Aideen's textbooks to read up on everything— Aideen was so sure Rionach was going to go to Horned Serpent, not Wampus. She didn't mind— she'd support her sister, no matter what.

But then that one horrible day came, and Aideen remembered it all too well. She had gotten up early in the morning, late July, and was magicking up breakfast. Technically, they weren't supposed to be using magic, but it wasn't like she was doing it in front of No-Majes.

Besides, Aideen reasoned, she could use some practice with practical magic.

Rionach had come down the stairs precisely as the bacon was beginning to crisp up. Aideen had been too busy to say much other than a good morning. If Rionach had replied, Aideen never heard it. Rionach just disappeared. She just walked out the backyard, and the gate was left open.

* * *

Aideen finished cleaning up, and smoothed her cranberry uniform dress. The dresses were her favorite uniform pieces, over the simple skirts or pants. It made her feel a little more like a witch.

She grabbed her hat and cloak off of the hook in the bathroom stall, and hurried back to class, pass in hand. She hung it up and headed back to her seat. She felt Kyla Grimsditch's eyes on her, and glanced back at her.

Adele Owens, the prettiest girl in their dorm, was sitting next to Kyla, and was glaring down at Aideen.

Aideen frowned. Usually Adele was sweet, almost to a sickly level. Aideen didn't run in her circles, but she was never glaring at her.

Deeply unsettled, Aideen turned in her seat and focused on the lecture notes. It was better to throw herself into the past of the Founders of Ilvermorny. The origins were somewhat well-known, but the details had been eroded away from their legends over the years.

"Isolt and James had two twin daughters, Rionach and Martha," Hastings continued. "Rionach Steward was our first Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and her painting is the one that hangs over Professor Fairchild's desk. It has been with the school since Rionach's death. She rarely speaks, which is uncharacteristic of the historical figure, so many scholars have theorized that she has a purpose beyond expanding Rionach's legacy. What that purpose is, none have found concrete evidence."

Saga raised her hand almost immediately, and Hastings' face lit up. "Yes, Saga?"

"Isn't Professor Castellan the source of several of those papers?" Saga asked, her eyes doe-like and her expression almost too innocent.

Hastings pursed her full lips before continuing. "Unfortunately. However, I cannot comment on my colleagues' work due to staff code. Or divulge the research as I suspect you wish me to, Saga, because Professor Castellan is fairly irritable for a Pukwudgie and would prefer I not talk about her papers because she believes they should remain confidential."

"I see," Saga said, remaining doe-eyed and innocent. "Thank you for explaining, Professor Hastings."

Professor Hastings simply nodded and continued on with her lecture. When Professor Hastings turned her back to write something on the board, a note landed on the desk. Aideen unfolded it and sighed.

 _You have more time now. Join the Dragon-Eye Coven. You should feel so lucky._

Aideen bit her lip and scribbled down a response.

 _You do realize my sister doesn't want me in her territory, right?_

Aideen folded it back up neatly, and it flew away on its own. Hastings turned around, and Aideen re-engrossed herself in her notes. She didn't see whose desk it had landed on.

"Martha Steward, however, is the most important of the two sisters," Hastings continued. "She had children with a man in the Potomuc tribe, and while those children did not practice magic, it is theorized amongst wizarding genealogists that there may be descendants of Isolt out there. Many genealogists are bothered with the question, and quite frankly, no one has come up with an actual link."

Saga's hand shot in the air.

"Yes, Saga?" Hastings asked brightly.

"Wouldn't they also be descendants of Salazar Slytherin, and related to that dark lord in England?" Saga asked.

"Yes. What's your point?" Hastings asked, leaning against her desk, looking curious as to where Saga was going to go with this.

"Why would people keep asking? I'd rather keep that stuff in the closet," Saga said with a shrug.

"Of course you would," Kyla Grimsditch muttered. "Traitor."

"Did you have something else to add, Kyla?" Hastings asked eagerly.

Saga glared at Kyla from across the lecture hall, as if daring her to say it.

"Well, Slytherin, for all of his faults was a great wizard," Kyla said. "I'd want to have that greatness in my blood."

"Yes, well, most likely none of you are his descendant," Hastings added hastily. "If anything, they're probably all no-mages in the Potumuc tribe. But back to actual history, just because Martha was a No-Maj like her father doesn't mean she didn't have important contributions to the school. For instance, the entrances into the towers were designed entirely by her, as well as the House common rooms and dormitories."

"Fascinating," Aideen muttered as she continued to fill in her notes. When Hastings turned the board again, a note landed on Aideen's desk, with a reply.

 _Your younger sister was just admitted._

* * *

Freya stormed to the circular table where Aideen was doing her homework, binders and notebooks and textbooks spread across the couch and table and even the floor.

"Why are you trying to get into the Dragon-Eye Coven?" Freya demanded.

"I wasn't," Aideen said, in as patient of a tone as she could manage. "One of your members has been recruiting me."

"Well, tell them to stop!" Freya ordered, jabbing her finger at Aideen's chest. "You've already got everything! You don't need to get into the Dragon-Eye Coven, too! That's the only thing that's mine!"

"Which is why you let Belle in?" The snide comment slipped out before Aideen realized she'd said it.

"That's different!" Freya hissed, realizing others were watching them. "Belle is also stuck in your shadow. I'm giving her a way out. Since you don't even try to make things easier for her."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Aideen looked up from her homework. She crossed her arms over her chest, to hide that she felt as if her heart were freezing, bracing for impact.

"Can't you just throw a competition or two?" Freya demanded. "Then maybe Mom might start paying attention to us again because her favorite is a failure again!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Aideen said, rising to her feet. "But I'm not throwing my successes just because Mom plays favorites. I have my future to think about."

"You're doing fine!" Freya shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. "You could just chill a little, and you'd still be fine! Everyone loves you, Mercy Lewis knows why!"

Something inside Aideen broke.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Aideen said, as she fought to hold back the tears. "But I—"

She leapt over her books and ran up to her dormitory, and flopped onto her bed, in tears.


	5. Chapter IV Umbrasmalas Revelio

Aideen had entered the old Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom as promptly as Saga had demanded. However, Saga was not the only one in the room. Two other girls, one wearing the crest for Horned Serpent on her robes, the other wearing one for Pukwudgie, sat on top of the old desks.

Aideen waved as she perched atop one of the desks rather awkwardly.

"Oh, hi!" said the Pukwudgie. "I'm Rhys! It's so nice to meet you! You're Aideen, right?"

"Right," Aideen mumbled.

"Well, you already know I'm Saga, and this is Ondine,"'Saga said, gesturing towards the Horned Serpent, who was fiddling with a flute in her hands, making tiny adjustments. After a few moments of silence, Ondine looked up.

"Oh. Hello." She looked back down to her flute.

"So, welcome to the Unicorn Club," Saga said. She pulled a small card out of her purse. Aideen accepted it. It was a small plastic one, like what the No-Maj-borns carried around in their purses. It was a light lavender in color and had a small white unicorn in its background as neon rainbow letters declared Aideen to be a member.

"I thought those would be fun to make," Saga admitted.

"And somehow they convinced the teachers to let us into the woods after school hours, even at night," Rhys said.

"Probably because it makes us seem more serious," Saga said, sitting up more primly. "My mom always said that an official card can open many doors."

"I've heard No-Majs have cards like these," Aideen said, tapping the plastic surface.

"Yeah, my mom has a couple," Saga said, her voice dropping low. She dipped her head forward so her hair swished forth, providing a curtain to her face. "They all do different things, though."

"Your mom is a No-Maj?" Aideen asked. It was still highly unusual, even after the repeal of Rappaport's Law. There was inherent distrust with No-Majs, and especially with the children of the unions. Even if that was an old world, the wizarding world was founded upon tradition and the old ways.

Saga nodded, and a blush rose to her cheeks. "Yeah."

"Oh," Aideen said. "Sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about," Saga said in an icy tone. "It shouldn't matter what the wizards think of her."

But it does was the clause that remained unspoken.

Ondine looked up from her flute. "Are we looking for unicorns tonight?"

"That, and a few other things," Saga said, suddenly all-business. "Aideen's here because she needs a way to investigate some off-limits areas without suspicion. Which we can do."

"Plus, I need a new hobby," Aideen said quietly. She put the card in the front patch of her satchel. "But I don't even know where I'd start."

"I might have a few ideas," Saga admitted. "You said you think it happened before the locker rooms?"

"That's where I was going before. . ." Aideen placed a hand on her forehead.

"This is about your attack," Ondine stated, her large, eerie blue eyes staring at Aideen.

"Saga suggested it might not have been about Quodpot," Aideen said.

"Interesting," Ondine said, tilting her head to the side. Aideen looked down again at her card, not knowing how else to escape Ondine's piercing stare. It remained unblinking.

"And the hexes were too advanced, too dark for a bunch of kids," Aideen added. "Madam Downey. . . She said they were really bad."

"Wouldn't staff know if it's dark magic?" Rhys asked nervously.

"I don't know," Aideen said, looking curiously to Saga.

"They'd keep quiet, especially to the victim," Saga said. "I know something's going on. In the magical world. My dad works as an investigative Auror. He says there's been lots of cases of kids disappearing and more dark covens being discovered."

"So does mine," Aideen said. She tilted her own head, wondering what else she and this other girl had in common. "I haven't heard of anything like that."

"That's because it's supposed to be a secret," Saga said. "But secrets don't exactly fly well with Mom."

"So you think the attack on me could be related?" Chills went down Aideen's spine. "No. No. It can't be. I'm not that important—"

"Oh, please," Ondine said, and everyone swiveled to face her. "You're from two Auror bloodlines, one of which dates back to the Original Twelve, and plenty of old wizarding families from Europe- and besides you've won so many awards over the course of the past three years, you put most seventh-years to shame! If someone wants to make a point, they'd attack you, or your family— and they already have."

Aideen blanched. "No. No."

"My father said that a Rionach Graves Scholt was to come to Ilvermorny this year," Ondine said. "I'd bet that she isn't ill, is she."

Aideen knew it wasn't a question. She swallowed, and looked back down to the card, and was running her fingers along the edges. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. Saying it was like finally acknowledging that Rionach might never come back, that things might never be out entirely right again.

"She disappeared in the morning, one day in the summer," Aideen said. "She just walked out the door— I don't know what happened or where she went. I only hope she's okay."

Ondine tilted her head to the other side this time. "It's likely the same people who took Rionach attacked you."

"We don't technically know anything about what happened to Riri," Aideen protested. She frowned, thinking for a moment, and she let out a little gasp. "If it's true, though. . . Oh Mercy Lewis, I hope it's not true."

"That's why we're heading our own investigation," Saga said as she opened up a red trunk hidden under the old oak teacher's desk. Inside were torches, and a thin brick-red book with golden lettering on the outside.

The Students' Guide to the Forest, the book read. Ondine snatched up the book, and fished a chain out from under her robes. It jingled and jangled with a great many keys, and she found the correct one without looking, and used it to unlock the book.

"It's a moving map to the campus, and in particular, the Hide-Behind Forest," Ondine explained without looking up. The pages glowed gold, illuminating Ondine's face.

"These are torches with wizards' fire," Saga explained as she pressed a button on the side of the torches, setting of green fire immediately. "These were enchanted by Rionach Steward and Chadwick Boot personally— they have charms that ward off the Hide-Behinds."

"The teachers just let you use these?" Aideen asked incredulously as she picked one up. She treated it with a light touch, afraid to break these priceless artifacts. She looked it up and down in awe. Anything to do with Good Witch Morrigan, as the legendary Isolt Sayre was called, was shrouded in mystery and legend. This was legend come to life.

"They think we're a bunch of silly girls hunting down unicorns in the forest—they figure we'll be good," Saga said with a shrug.

"We are that, most of the time," Rhys pointed out. "And I like other types of magical horses. I race my own, Appleblossom, and she's a dryad breed."

"Dryad breed?" Aideen frowned, unfamiliar with the term.

"Type of horse that has plant magic, also changes colors depending on the distance from No-Maj settlements and the like," Rhys said. "My family breeds all sorts of magical horses, and I like to race some of them. We do that in England, or at least, we did."

"Did?" Aideen asked, unable to stifle her curiosity.

"The Meadowes family fled the country after what happened to Dorcas," Rhys said. "My mom, she fled because she was a blood traitor. Her entire family was full of Death Eaters, but Mom didn't believe that stuff. She came here, and she and Dad somehow met."

"Wow," Aideen said, not sure what else to say. "I'm sorry."

"It all happened before I was born," Rhys said dismissively. "Besides, I think we oughta start looking for whatever Saga thinks will help."

"To be fair, we all know Ondine is the brains of this operation," Saga said. "I want to get her out there, she might notice things that the rest of us might not."

"Fair enough," Aideen said.

* * *

The part of the hallway right before the Wampus locker rooms felt as cold as ice. The tension around the air was so thick, Aideen felt as if she could hardly breathe, and the faint scars on her right arm from one of the many dark hexes that were still healing up tingled uncomfortably. Even the torches seemed dimmer here, as if the magic there knew something undeniably Dark had happened there.

"The staff cleaned up the site pretty good," Saga said.

"Were you down here?" Aideen asked.

"I may have gotten some photographs that were anonymously submitted to the school newspapers," Saga said, turning away from her.

Aideen bit her lip to prevent herself from asking more questions— it was clear that Saga would most likely not answer them.

"Do you have any of those photographs?" Ondine asked, her unblinking blue gaze surveying all.

"I kept some copies for myself," Saga said as she reached into her backpack. Rhys headed towards the other two, but Aideen didn't look, resisting the curiosity. Only a few memories of what she could see through the bandages all over her body after the attack were enough to dissuade her.

Aideen surveyed the room herself, but to her distress, no matter how much she strained to, she simply could not remember what had taken place there. She shivered, pulling her robes more closely around her, and drew her wand.

" _Umbrasmalas Revelio_."

Aideen remembered the spell from one of Professor Fairchild's stories about when he was an Auror on the force alongside her mother. It had been a simple off-hand mention, and he never entirely explained out it worked, but she inferred that it was to track down dark magic.

Almost immediately, a deep violet symbol appeared on the wall, and Aideen could see similar ones on the floor, and in other places on the wall. The big one, that stood out the most, was different. The symbol didn't represent spell movements like the others. It was a complex picture of a snake.

"Whoa," Rhys said, looking away from the photographs. "What are those?"

"Traces of dark magic," Aideen answered, squaring her shoulders and feeling proud of herself. "Most of these show hexes, but this one is different." She jabbed her wand at the serpent picture.

"Can I take a picture?" Saga asked, drawing a sleek camera in bright colors out of her backpack.

"Sure," Aideen said. _I think you would've, even if I said no, anyway._

"Wonder if the teachers found this?" Rhys asked Ondine nervously.

"Oh, they most certainly did," Ondine answered airily. "I'd go with Saga's interpretation earlier— they know something's up and they're hiding it from the students."

"Then why cancel Quodpot if it's got nothing to do with Quodpot?" Aideen asked indignantly.

"A diversion," Ondine said, mostly to herself. "To help sell the illusion that nothing bad is happening at Ilvermorny. My father wouldn't like seeing that sort of thing, especially in the New York Ghost."

"Then we should tell someone we saw this," Aideen said.

"Not when we can find out more on our own," Saga insisted. "Come on, don't be such a Dorcas."

Aideen hesitated a moment. "Okay."


	6. Chapter V Break the Chain

"Look alive, Aideen!"

Aideen tightened her grip on her broomstick. Just because Quodpot was cancelled didn't mean that Quidditch was, and Wampus, for once, had thrown everything into their Quidditch team with Quodpot's absence.

She watched the ball, and soared over where she knew it would land, catching it effortlessly.

Spotting a Bludger coming her way, Aideen curved around it in a loop and tossed it to Marion Ziegler, who had to swoop down to catch it as Aideen led the Bludger away.

Aideen had forgotten how much fun Quidditch was— and how much more exciting than Quodpot! She suddenly knew why it was harder to get on the Quidditch team than the Quodpot team.

Marion, from thirty yards away, attempted a throw, and during the last few seconds of flight, the Quaffle gently curved into the right hoop.

Ignatia Van Leer drew her whistle out from under her robes and blew it. "And time's up! That's it for tonight, team! Nero, Casey, Adele! Help round up the balls!"

Ignatia hovered beside Aideen, dropping her voice lower. "If you could, Aideen, work on your arm movements, please. I know there's still some limited mobility, because of that hex, but your passes are still a little off."

"Okay," Aideen said with a nod.

Ignatia smiled. "Hey, I know you'll get past this— you always do. And I think you'll be ready for the game on Saturday."

"Thanks," Aideen said. "One last practice tomorrow?"

Ignatia shook her head. "I want to make sure you've all gotten some rest." Ignatia sat up straight, and squinted into the stands, where there was a boy in No-Maj clothing sitting, watching the Chasers in particular intently. "Is he one of us?"

Aideen looked to him, and recognized the face. "Angelus Quill. Quodpot player. For us, of course."

"Oh, right," Ignatia said disdainfully. "Most Quodpot players are objectively terrible fliers." She glanced back to Aideen. "With a few exceptions."

"I get it," Aideen said.

"He better not want a spot on my team," Ignatia said.

"I'll go talk to him," Aideen assured her. She flew into the stands and landed on a bench, a bit unsteadily. Angelus rose, offering her a steadying hand.

"Careful there," Angelus said, a light smile on his face.

"Thanks, I'll take that into consideration," Aideen said as she stepped down off the bench. "What are you doing here?"

Angelus blinked. "I thought I'd see how you were holding up."

"You could just talk to me in the common room," Aideen pointed out as she grabbed her broom.

"You're never in the common room,"'Angelus said. "You're always so busy."

"Well, with the Quidditch game this week, and the Inter-House Potions Competition next week," Aideen said with a shrug, "I've got to keep on top. Especially since there's gonna be a Potions competition with students from all twelve of the major schools this year."

"And you're in the Charms Bridgade—"

"Because I'm aiming for the Charms Chalice, fourth year in a row," Aideen said.

"And the Transfiguration Tournament, and the Excellency in Ancient Runes, and the Arithomancy Accolades," Angelus added good-naturedly.

"To be fair, I've never gotten those last two," Aideen pointed out, smiling as she adjusted her broom.

Angelus laughed. "You clearly have your time filled up, then. That's why we never see you in the common room. But anyways, I saw on the bulletin board that Quidditch practice was today, and I thought I'd watch. And check in."

"Oh, well then," Aideen said. "I'm fine. I'll be fine."

"I see that now," Angelus said. "You're a good flier, by the way."

"Thanks," Aideen said, shoving her free hand into her pocket. She glanced down at her flying boots.

"I thought you might have some free time after the game on Saturday," Angelus said, shoving his hands into his own pockets of the Wampus jacket he'd bought from Gordian Knot Goods. "Like, to Eichhorn's, or maybe the Lovecraft Café, if you're up to it. . ."

"I think I could spare the time," Aideen said. "It would be great to catch up, since I don't see that much of you anymore, since Quodpot was cancelled."

"Yeah, catch up," Angelus repeated, looking a little less happy than before.

"So which one will I meet you at?" Aideen asked.

"Um, Eichhorn's," Angelus said decidedly.

"Alright then, I can't wait," Aideen said. "It'll be nice to hang out with a friend."

"Yeah," Angelus said. He hesitated a moment. "Want me to walk you to the locker rooms?"

"Sure," Aideen said. "Carry my broom for me?"

"You got it," Angelus said, taking her broom from her.

* * *

In the dining hall, Aideen sat down next to Belle and Freya. Aideen looked like Belle more than Freya did— they both looked like their father, while Freya, Finn, and Rionach deeply resembled their mother.

"How are you guys?" Aideen asked cheerily as a pukwudgie served a platter of the night's cooking.

"Fine," Freya said icily.

"I blew up the Potions lab," Belle said proudly.

"Are you serious?" Aideen raised her eyebrows. "What happened?"

"Calm down," Belle said, her voice as abrasive as sandpaper. "I might not have followed the directions the best—I'll only be in detention for three days for this one."

"And?" Aideen prompted.

"Only twenty points from Wampus, nothing you can't fix on your own," Belle said bitterly.

"You really don't need to worry about us," Freya added. "You're good enough to make up for both of us."

"What do you expect me to do?" Aideen asked. "I'm trying to help."

"Well, don't," Freya snapped.

Aideen looked down at the mashed potatoes and perfectly cut-up turkey. She suddenly wasn't hungry. She stood up abruptly. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

Aideen began to walk away when a pukwudgie stopped her.

"Don't you want your food?" the old creature asked irritably.

"Sorry, I'm not hungry, William," Aideen said, glancing down at her shoes.

"Well, take a package," William snapped, and the plate turned into a No-Maj Tupperware container. "Today is not going to be the day I let students go hungry in Isolt's school you hear me?"

"Loud and clear," Aideen mumbled, taking it to avoid any trouble. She stormed out of the dining hall, head down and walking faster than she ever remembered in her life.

* * *

Inside the Wampus common room, a group of girls huddled around a table, hiding what was on it from view.

"We know where we're meeting next?" Adele Owens asked. She sounded so serious, Aideen couldn't help but do a double-take.

"Snakewood Tree, tomorrow night," Kyla Grimsditch said.

"Someone's here," Edith Prysny said.

The girls all whirled around, and Aideen felt impelled to step forward, despite all common sense saying otherwise.

"S-Sorry, I just came in, wanted to eat dinner in the dorms," Aideen said nervously.

"You didn't hear anything," Kyla growled as she sauntered over, looming over Aideen despite being in her year. "Say nothing of what you might or might not have heard."

"Y-Yes, s-sorry," Aideen mumbled. She scurried up into the dormitory and pulled out the album of photographs in which Rionach and Belladonna were playing on the streets of Steward Square.

"I miss you," Aideen whispered.


	7. Chapter VI Snakewood Tree

"Are you sure?" Saga asked, glancing between Ondine and Aideen. "You think we should investigate that of all things? It's probably some stupid girls' club."

"The way they were being all secretive," Aideen said as she folded her arms across her chest, "something didn't feel right."

"You're basing this off of intuition, then," Ondine said.

"Don't say it like I'm crazy," Aideen said. "All the greatest wizards and witches relied on their intuition above all else."

"This isn't as simple as intuition," Saga said. "We're trying to do a legitimate investigation here, Aideen."

"So?" Aideen asked.

"So!" Saga sounded outraged. "No-Maj detectives use logic and reason, and their criminal justice system is so much more advanced than ours is! Partially because we rely on crap like intuition over actual reason!"

"Actually, wasn't Sherlock Holmes a No-Maj detective who used a lot of intuition?" Aideen asked, remembering the require No-Maj literature they had to read in third year.

"And facts," Ondine said. "He noticed lots and lots of facts and made legitimate guesses based on them."

"Well, if you're not going to listen to me, I'll just take a torch myself and stake them out," Aideen said.

"You'll be on your own, then," Saga said with a shrug. "The rest of us plan on investigating the spells used. What was the spell you used back there?"

" _Umbramalas Revelio_ ," Aideen mumbled.

"I'll go with you," Rhys offered.

Ondine sighed. "You don't need to be all diplomatic, Rhys."

"It's my choice," Rhys insisted. "And I want to check out the Snakewood Tree, I've heard rumors about it."

"Like what?" Aideen asked.

Rhys shrugged.

"It's supposed to have come from Slytherin's wand," Saga said. "As in, Salazar Slytherin, Founder of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"How did it get all the way over here?" Aideen asked.

"Something to do with Isolt, I'd guess," Saga said with a shrug. "If you guys want to get to the Snakewood Tree before Kyla Grimsditch and her crowd, you'd better get a move on."

Rhys grabbed two torches, and Aideen's hand. "Come on, we'll take a look."

"Fine!" Saga shouted as Rhys pulled Aideen along out of the classroom.

"Slow down!" Aideen cried after a few minutes.

"Oh, sorry," Rhys said, and she dropped Aideen's wrist. Aideen shook it out, and followed Rhys at a slower pace.

"Thanks for sticking with me," Aideen said.

"Not a problem," Rhys assured her. "I think you've got it right: something about Adele Owens is strange."

"What do you mean?" Aideen asked, confused.

Rhys shrugged. "There's just something weird about her, you know? Especially since she was born to No-Majs, yet gets along with Kyla Grimsditch and her crowd of old colonial families."

"That is a little strange," Aideen admitted.

"But anyway, Saga was right about needing to walk fast. We want to get a good spot to watch what goes down," Rhys said.

"Agreed."

Aideen quickened her pace once more at that.

* * *

They came to a stop in front of the Snakewood tree. With vibrant green leaves that were large and had vines trickling down, and carvings of snakes and figures Aideen didn't recognize in the pattern of the wood, it was a near-sacred site to those who attended Ilvermorny.

"Whoa," Aideen murmured. She'd rarely been this way, but had been blown away by it every single time. She closed her eyes, and could hear the vines rustling in the wind— it almost sounded like a snake hissing.

"They'll be hiding under all these vines, most likely," Rhys said, looking up at the tree.

"And I liked these tights," Aideen said mournfully.

"Don't you know some sort of sewing spell?" Rhys asked.

"I'm working on developing one, as an Arithomancy project," Aideen admitted.

"Really?" Rhys asked, looking to Aideen.

"Yeah, but there's still a lot of bugs," Aideen said, looking down at her cranberry uniform dress and matching tights. "I guess we'd better get climbing, shouldn't we?"

Rhys nodded her assent, and the two girls approached the base.

"We might be able to use the vines as ropes," Aideen said thoughtfully as she grabbed a particularly thick vine hanging close to the trunk.

"I'll admit, I like that idea better than what I had in mind," Rhys admitted, grabbing a vine of her own. "Up we go, then."

Aideen focused on planting her feet along the ridges of the sides, and pulled up. _Should've brought my broom_ , she thought.

* * *

Once both girls were on a secure branch, Aideen cast a Disillusionment Charm.

"This is wicked," Rhys said with amazement, looking at her hands.

"Don't move too much," Aideen warned, glancing down at the shaded area underneath the tree. "This doesn't make you completely invisible, you know, not unless you're really good at it. Which I am not. Yet."

"Yet," Rhys said, shaking her head with what Aideen thought might be a grin. It was hard to tell with the Disillusionment Charm.

"Shh," Aideen said, seeing a ripple in the vines.

Just as the two girls pressed themselves against the branch, careful in their balance, the group of Wampus girls Aideen had seen earlier entered. Not all at the same time, or same entry point, but they gathered all around Kyla Grimsditch. One of the stragglers to the party was Adele Owens, looking to be in a sorry state.

"Good," Kyla said, giving Adele a biting glare. "You all managed to make it. We're going to get the wand out, for tomorrow."

"What are we doing again?" Edith Prysny asked.

"We are going to curse the one Heir who could stop our plan," Kyla said, glancing at Adele. "Quidditch is dangerous, even more than Quodpot. If we can off her, then we stand a good chance of moving forward the plot we dreamed two years ago."

"I'll be able to do the most damage," Adele said. "I'll be able to delay the game, of course."

"Indeed," Kyla said with a smirk. "And you'll have the closest go at Scholt."

Aideen breathed in sharply, and she could feel Rhys's eyes on her.

"I won't let her stand in my way," Adele vowed. The other girls turned and glared at her. "Our way."

"Then you retrieve it," Kyla ordered.

"Gladly," Adele said. She turned to the base of the tree. "I want the wand."

The tree glowed and shuddered, and Aideen and Rhys both clutched the tree branch with all their might. Out of the trunk of the tree appeared a long wand, and it hovered straight into Adele's hand. She turned to Kyla.

"It's yours to use," she said.

Kyla grinned, and took it. "Thanks. Now we better get going, before anyone makes any unfortunate guesses."

Kyla turned, addressing all of the girls. "Tomorrow, we take out the most powerful of our enemies!"

She jabbed the wand into the air, creating a ghostly green light. The other girls cheered at that. Kyla then slid the wand into a holster in the fancy dueling belt she always wore.

Then, as soon as they had gathered, the girls had disbanded. While Rhys sat up, Aideen lay there, in shock at what she had heard.

"Say something," Rhys said finally.

"I don't what there is to say," Aideen said frustratedly.

"Can you remove the charms?" Rhys asked.

"Sure." Aideen forced herself to sit up, and reversed the spell. "Why am I their greatest enemy? Sure, Kyla and I have never gotten along. . . But I wouldn't call us enemies—rivals at most."

"That's what you latch onto?" Rhys demanded, her eyes gaping and wide. "They're going to kill you, Aideen! And they're planning something really bad."

"Well, I don't understand why they want me out of the way," Aideen said. "I'm not the heir to the Graves or Scholt lineages. Those titles have been passed to Finn and Freya, respectively."

"They might've meant it in a general way," Rhys rationalized. "And for wanting you out of the way— whatever it is they're up to, they know that you're the most powerful witch of our age. You'd probably be able to stop whatever they're up to."

"I think you overestimate my capabilities," Aideen said with a snort. "I'm just a girl who studies a lot. Not that special."

Rhys rolled her eyes. "And I thought Saga was bad with the faux-humble crap."

"Sorry," Aideen mumbled. "Others feel bad when they say that. I don't like making other people feel jealous or worthless."

"That's not necessarily on you," Rhys said. "Especially since you never flaunt that around. Nothing to be ashamed of, being good at something."

"Thanks," Aideen said. She glanced down at the ground once more. "I guess we have one course of action."

"Tell the teachers?" Rhys asked.

"No, we play Quidditch."


	8. Chapter VII Thunderbird versus Wampus

The morning of the match, Aideen awoke to Adele staring over her, her deep brown eyes hollow-looking and her expression oddly determined. Aideen didn't say a word, and the two girls stared at each other as Aideen propped herself up on her elbows.

"You ought to get your robes on," Adele said, her face melting into a sweet smile and her voice charming as it was in their classes and practices. "Don't want to be late, you know."

"Y-Yeah," Aideen said, wincing at the shakiness of her voice.

"Well, I'll see you out on the pitch." Adele gave a cutesy little finger wave, and stepped away.

When she went down to the dining hall, she sat with Belle, Freya, and Freya's boyfriend, Jonathan. All were sporting the Wampus gear, black and reddish-orange, like the Wampus itself.

"Hope you win this one," Jonathan said. "We need something to put a victory for against Thunderbird. Especially since they got Quodpot cancelled."

Aideen could only nod, having just shoveled scrambled eggs into her mouth.

"Good luck, Dee," Belle said with a manic grin beneath her Wampus-shaped hat. "I can't wait for the victory party after this one! I already bought Weasley Wizard Wheezes' fireworks!"

"Pipe down!" Freya hissed, glancing over her shoulder at the teachers' table. "I'm already in some trouble for the Dragon-Eye stuff— we don't need them to find out about the fireworks!"

"What happened?" Aideen asked, feeling a bit guilty that she didn't already know.

Freya glared at the teacher's table before stabbing her bacon violently with a fork. "They found out about us cursing and then Obliviating members of the Thunderbird Quodpot Team."

"Freya, no," Aideen said chidingly. "Why?"

Freya shrugged sullenly. "Would've given you a leg up."

"But it's alright," Jonathan said quickly, taking Freya's hand. "It's going to be all okay, right?"

"Right," Freya admitted reluctantly.

Aideen looked down at her plate, and decided to just down the coffee in lieu of more breakfast. As she was about to do so, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Angelus standing there.

"Good luck," he said with a grin. "I bet you'll do great. Are we still on for Eichhorn's after the match?"

"Yeah," Aideen said, smiling herself. "I can't wait."

"Me too," Angelus said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Welp, good luck."

With that he walked away, and Aideen turned back to see Freya staring at her smugly.

"Does little Dee have a crush?" Freya said in an overly sweet voice.

Aideen said nothing, turning bright red. "It's not like that!"

"Oh, that poor boy will have his work cut out for him," Freya muttered.

Jonathan laughed. "To be fair, you were like that, too."

"I came around in the end, didn't I?" Freya said, grinning and rolling her eyes.

Adele Owens then appeared, a little too suddenly. "Ignatia wants us in the locker rooms. Now."

Aideen looked helplessly into the masses of students for Rhys, Ondine, or Saga. But none of them seemed to be anywhere in sight.

"Alright," she said quietly. She looked to her sisters, but none of them seemed to be paying any attention to her.

"Come on, can't be late." Adele sounded cold and hard, like the granite that had built this castle. Adele grabbed Aideen's arm. "Let's go."

Aideen helplessly followed Adele along the same corridors that she had been attacked in. _Is this it is this it is this the end?_

Aideen's heartbeat drowned out all other sounds, and every second dragged in that agony of wondering if it would be her last. Finally, they passed through the antechamber and into the locker room.

Murmuring a few words of relief, Aideen headed off to her locker without another word to Adele. She prodded the lock with her finger, and the door swung open with a loud creak. She changed into the Quidditch robes and equipment, and put her wand away— it was no use trying, for Mr. Proctor, the flying teacher, frisked everyone before they could play.

Aideen took out her broom, and closed the locker decisively. _Remember to focus. And get her caught if she tries._

* * *

On the field, Aideen stood close to Marion. Looking up into the Quidditch stands, she could see her sisters waving large Wampus flags, and could see Angelus trying to make eye contact with her. In the very middle of the stands, Kyla Grimsditch and the other girls stood there, whispering as Kyla watched with a solemn glare.

"Welcome, to the second game of the season," said bubbly Joseph Edwards, a Pukwudgie with an enthusiasm for sports. "Wampus versus Thunderbird! In lieu of the cancelled Quodpot matches, we see our epic showdown here!"

"Alright, let's get started," Proctor said. "Mount your brooms!"

Aideen did so, aware of the clamminess of her hands beneath her fresh gloves she'd bought last month.

"Let's play!"

With a strong kick as a shrill whistle followed the enthusiastic shout, Aideen soared into the air, quickly catching the Quaffle as it was thrown up for all. Aideen only made it a few feet forwards before tossing the ball to Marion. Aideen and Ignatia got into position, as they had in their plays in the last practice.

Everything else was trivial, including the Thunderbird players. Dressed in the unofficial gold color with motifs of feathers, they were shiny blips on Aideen's radar. Indeed, if she did pay attention to anyone other than Marion or Ignatia, it was Adele.

Seeing her in her peripheral vision made Aideen jump slightly every time, but she accounted for it with her grip.

 _Keep it together._

Aideen hurried up, and managed to catch the ball from halfway across the pitching area, and took a throw into a side hoop—

"Five points for Wampus!"

The Wampus section of the stands roared in glee at this first, small triumph.

All Aideen felt was a cold wind. She dropped down in height on a whim, and knew, although she hadn't seen anything, that Adele had just tried to kill her.

But she couldn't focus on that then. She had to win this. She glided under Marion, who dropped it to her. Aideen swooped back up, flanked by a Beater and a Chaser from Thunderbird.

She couldn't help it— a smile came to her face. The adrenaline and wind was what she loved and played for— it had been so long since she'd played like this. For a moment, she forgot that her life was on the line.

Seeing a Bludger in her peripheral vision, and the Beater getting a bit close and enthusiastic, Aideen tossed the Quaffle to Ignatia, who made a quick switch to Marion, so effortless and quick that the Beater that had flanked Aideen had gone after Ignatia instead.

As Aideen was flying towards the goals, a movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She slowed down and glanced over her shoulder to see Adele smirking as if she was thinking of a joke she found insanely funny.

Before Aideen could react, she felt a cold wind, and over her shoulder came a sensation like it was being pierced with a needle. On a split-decision, Aideen dropped.

"Mercy Lewis!" Someone screamed in the audience as Aideen closed her eyes, and when at about six feet, fell off her broom, rolled, and lay on the ground, trying to move as little as possible.

"Oh my God," Proctor said as he rushed over.

"It came from the stands!"

Aideen heard footsteps after a hasty landing, and cool fingers reached for her face.

"Wake up, Aidy!" Adele Owens cried, a note of desperation in her voice.. "You can't be dead!"

Aideen never felt so smug in her life having opened her eyes. "I'm okay—I think."

A hand flew to Mr. Proctor's heart. "Oh thank God."

Aideen leapt to her feet, Adele barely jumping back. "And I know one of your friends did it!"

"Whoa, whoa, Aideen, my office!" Mr. Proctor said. He looked up to the stands. "This match is to be post-poned!"

Shoulder throbbing with what felt like a burning, piercing needle, Aideen stumbled into Mr. Proctor's office, the flight coach closely following her. She sat down in one of the rigid pewter chairs as Mr. Proctor sat behind his desk.

"Madam Downey will be down in a few minutes," Mr. Proctor assured her. "I'm sorry about your attack, Aideen. I know this must be traumatic for you, especially after your attack earlier."

"Thank you," Aideen said, but she couldn't help but be suspicious something else was coming, from behind those words.

"However, you can't just throw accusations," Mr. Proctor said. "I know you have historically had problems with some of Adele's friends, but that's no reason to accuse them—"

"You don't understand!" Aideen protested, gripping the arm rests. "I saw them, under the Snakewood Tree, and they were talking specifically about 'taking me out.'"

"When was this?" Mr. Proctor steepled his fingers in front of his face.

"Last night," Aideen said. "I was walking in the common room on Thursday a bit early from dinner, and overheard they were going there Friday evening, and they threatened me when they noticed I was there. So I decided to follow them, and I saw them talking about some plans or something, and how they were going to get rid of their greatest enemy or something like that."

"You know we can't prove that," Mr. Proctor said. "All we have is your word for it, Aideen. And if we just take that, people will see it as favoritism."

"I can prove it," Aideen said in a small voice. "I know a special spell for uncovering dark magic."

Mr. Proctor sighed. "Let the teachers handle this, Aideen. I promise, we'll get to the bottom of this, with actual evidence. I'm sorry that this has happened to you, and twice, but there's not anything you can do."

Aideen bit her lip. She'd trusted her teachers— and yet she cursed herself for not trying to cast a spell without a wand, even though she knew she couldn't. She knew her word wouldn't be taken as law, but she thought they'd at least take it as a suggestion.

Now she knew she was on her own.

After a moment, Madam Downey arrived with her healing kit.

"It was a curse like the one from Abigail Williams' poppet," Madam Downey said when examining her. "Luckily, it's a simple salve. I'll be back in a moment—it would be better not to move that shoulder too much with that curse."

Aideen nodded. Madam Downey left, and in entered Headmaster Fontaine, Ondine by his side.

"You're okay!" Ondine cried, embracing her, unfortunately, on the wrong shoulder.

"Ow," Aideen said. "Thanks, but ow."

"My daughter was very worried for your safety," Headmaster Fontaine said. "And so am I. This is the second attack of dark magic on you, isn't it, Miss Graves Scholt?"

"It is," Aideen admitted.

"Combined with your sister's disappearance this summer and your parents' careers, I must wonder if they have made any enemies," Headmaster Fontaine said.

Suddenly, Aideen knew why Ondine was the way she was.

"I wouldn't know," Aideen said. "My parents don't really bring their work home."

"But surely you must know of some bigger cases they worked on," Fontaine said. His eyes were a dark hazel but somehow, they still were just as piercing as Ondine's blue ones.

"I really don't," Aideen said, starting to get angry. "Ask them, not me. I don't know anything about what they're getting up to."

"Alright," Fontaine said, glancing at his daughter. "I now need to speak to Miss Owens. I wish you the best recovery, Miss Graves Scholt. Stay here, Ondine."

Ondine nodded, and watched her father leave, then looked back to Aideen. "That was brilliant, that feint you did, when they hit you. You should've seen their faces."

Mr. Proctor squinted. "Whose?"

"Edith Prysny, Kyla Grimsditch, oh and especially Lizzie Hubble," Ondine said with a fey glee.

Mr. Proctor nodded, as if takin note of those names. "Just a moment— I need to take care of something."

As he left, Madam Downey returned. "Just a touch, and good as new," Downey promised. "I hear that a young man is awaiting to make sure you're alright."

"Angelus," Aideen realized. "I'm betting he's gonna be crushed, now that they're probably cancelling the portal to Steward Square."

"For security reasons," Madam Downey confirmed. "But I don't think that'll matter much, to him, at least."

"I didn't know you had a crush," Ondine said, her voice lilting with teasing.

"It's all friendly," Aideen promised.

Madam Downey smiled and gave a sound of derision. "Well, you're good to go. I'd suggest you go find this Angelus. I think Agilbert will be fine if you go with her, Ondine."

Ondine nodded and the two girls set off out of Mr. Proctor's office.


	9. Chapter VIII The Witch Trials

Ondine and Aideen were stopped by Saga and Rhys before they could reach Angelus.

"What was that?" Saga demanded. "Taking on Adele like that, in public?"

"I wasn't thinking straight," Aideen said. She glanced over Saga's shoulder, wishing she could project thoughts or at least be a Legillimens. Should've bought that book last time I was home.

"I'll say!" Saga cried. "We don't have as a good of a chance of getting her now!"

"I know, I know," Aideen murmured.

"Come on! Look at me!" Saga shouted.

Aideen flinched and stepped back. But when she looked again, Angelus was gone.

"What is wrong with you?" Saga demanded. "What's up with you!"

"She nearly fell off her broom!" Rhys protested, placing her hand on Saga's arm. "Give her a break."

"I need to go," Aideen said. "I'll see you around, in a bit."

With that, she ran off after where she had last seen Angelus. He was gone, however, having disappeared into the crowds of students exiting the Quidditch stadium. The rumble of a twice-disappointed student body hung in the air, and Aideen couldn't help but feel responsible.

If I'd been patient, if I'd drawn it out longer, Aideen chastised herself. Then you'd have more proof.

"Angelus?" Aideen cried. "Angelus?"

She thought she saw his face, maybe, but it was too hard to tell. In the sea of faces, Aideen was left all alone.

Reluctant, she stalked back to the Unicorn Club. Saga looked snidely at her.

"I hope that was worth it," she said in a deadpan.

"I lost the person I was trying to talk to, because you interrupted me," Aideen retorted.

"Well, perhaps we should talk," Rhys said, trying to mediate between personalities.

"Fine," Aideen said. "Let's get to the old Defense classroom."

"Fine," Saga said.

When the girls entered the classroom, Saga locked the door behind them.

"Where do we go from here?" Rhys asked as she sat atop a desk.

"Adele isn't going to be so bold, and it'll get harder to prove she and Grimsditch were involved," Ondine said, her blue eyes staring straight ahead.

"We have to prove that she's behind this," Saga said. She crossed her arms over her chest. "We got lucky before, we can get lucky again."

"So I'm going to be used as bait again and again until we finally get her?" Aideen demanded.

"Surely you can deal with it," Saga said. "You're a smart girl. Perfect little witch, isn't that right? Everyone's golden girl."

"What if I can't, Saga?" Aideen asked. "Even the best witches and wizards can fail in the right situations." She rose from her seat, looking around. "Besides, we're all forgetting something."

"And what would that be?" Ondine raised an eyebrow.

"They're targeting me specifically, something about being the only person who could stop them," Aideen said.

"Because you're Miss Perfect," Saga said.

"Maybe," Aideen said. "But think about it: there's many great students, and even better teachers and wizards and witches. I've still got a lot to learn, and I was nearly a No-Maj, besides. Why would I be the top priority?"

"I don't think anyone believes you when you say that," Saga said, shaking her head. "Especially not from the Graves and Scholt bloodlines."

"It's actually very common for very powerful witches and wizards to not show any powers till right before their eleventh birthday," Ondine said. "My father says he was the same way."

"That's not the point!" Aideen threw her hands up in the air like stop signs. "The point is, they shouldn't be so focused on me. There are other, better targets. So there's something going on that involves me directly. And my sister."

"What do you mean?" Rhys tilted her head.

"Rionach went missing," Aideen said. "Saga, you somehow know about it. Don't you think it's strange, two Graves-Scholt girls being targeted within the same few months?"

"You think a bunch of schoolgirls kidnapped your sister?" Saga asked, looking derisively to Ondine.

"I don't think it was Adele Owens and Kyla Grimsditch specifically," Aideen said, pausing to think over her words. "But I think they're part of something much bigger."

"So what do you want to do?" Rhys asked.

"I think we figure out what they want," Aideen said. "If we figure out what they want, we could actually do more than get half the Wampus girls in trouble."

"And how will we do that?" Rhys asked. She glanced at Saga.

"None of us are members, and none of us will get accepted— we're not Wampuses," Sara pointed out.

"After Monday next week we go home for Thanksgiving Break," Aideen reminded them. "I'll see if there's been some special enemies of either of my parents. I don't know if they know about my attack—"

"The school definitely contacted them," Ondine said.

Aideen felt a little deflation in her chest. Then they really don't care what happens to me.

After all this time, after all this work, some part of them still must've viewed her as an almost-No-Maj. Not as their talented, over-achieving daughter. She bit her lip to keep from crying then and there.

"I'll also do research on dark organizations," Aideen added.

"No, I can cover that," Saga said, looking a little softer in the eyes.

"Well, thanks," Aideen said. She glanced out the dusty windows. "I should probably get going."

"Where to?" Rhys asked.

"Most likely to find that gentleman friend Madam Downey spoke of," Ondine said with a slight twitch to her lips.

Aideen felt her cheeks grow hot. "Maybe."

She headed to the door and left the other three girls behind.

When she entered the Wampus Common Room, Kyla Grimsditch and the other Wampus girls Aideen had seen under the Snakewood Tree were glaring at her.

"How dare you, Graves-Scholt!" Kyla shouted, standing at her feet. "Accusing the No-Maj-born of all people, of attempting to kill you? I knew it, you're just a bigot!"

"I've got nothing against the No-Majs," Aideen said.

"It's not like you've got any No-Maj friends," Kyla sneered. "It's not like you've got any real friends at all. Something about you must be so repulsive, people can't stand to have you around."

Aideen felt weak in the knees. It was true. Saga was far from a friend, as was Ondine. Rhys or Marion might have been the closest thing to one. She'd been so busy, spent so much time trying to make her parents proud of her. . . And in the end, no one truly cared about her.

"Look what you've put Adele through!" Kyla pointed to where the girls parted away to reveal Adele Owns sobbing, looking pretty while doing it, like a tragic heroine. Edith Prysny was holding her and giving her tissues.

Other students were starting to glare at Aideen.

"I didn't, you—"

"Leave them alone, Dee," Freya said, coming forth out of the crowd. "You've already made enough trouble today."

"First she gets Quodpot cancelled, now Quidditch is on the line," said a second-year. "Wouldn't surprise me if she's doing this all on purpose."

"Probably to act out because her sister disappeared."

"She's a danger to us all—"

"No, no," Aideen shook her head, backing away, but the door out of the common room was shut. She fumbled for the doorknob, but couldn't twist at it hard enough to open it. Helplessly. she looked out into a sea of faces— but not even Belle or Freya or Jonathan wanted to help.

Everyone, even her family, believed at least to some degree that she was the cause of all this.

She turned and tried to open the door,Noble but it was stuck.

"LET ME OUT!" she screamed, banging on the door. The sea of faces closed in on her, and Aideen dropped to her knees, still banging at the door, weaker and weaker each time.

"For the love of John Proctor," a male voice muttered, before Aideen felt a hand on her shoulder, shaking it gently before grabbing her upper arm, pulling her to her feet. She then heard a loud bang, right in her ear.

Everyone froze. The common room fell silent. Aideen's ears rang as she looked beside her to see Angelus standing next to her, wand in the air, quivering.

"That's enough!" Angelus shouted. He softened a bit. "Things are bad enough without us turning on each other—"

"She turned on Adele first!" Kyla yelled.

"You think I'm not aware of that?" Angelus looked to Aideen. "Look, I don't care who started this, but I'm ending it. We can't have another Salem here. Something's going on at Ilvermorny. These aren't random accidents."

"What would you know? You're barely a prefect, and that's because the kid who was supposed to be disappeared," Edith Prysny jeered.

"I earned this," Angelus said, his tone bitter. "Regardless of what happened to Malcolm DeWinters."

The room was silent, and Aideen mentally catalogued the name. Another disappeared kid. Right before his fifth year. . . Oh Mercy Lewis, what if I'm next?

Angelus spoke again. "We're not doing this."

With that, he opened the door and ushered Aideen out. She hadn't realized, but she was shaking again. Everyone was so quick to turn on her— and she'd made it far too easy. She would've kept walking away it Angelus hadn't caught her shoulder again.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Aideen insisted, looking away.

"You don't have to be brave," he said.

Aideen looked to his eyes. They were a pretty green, and there was something nice about them. She thought of avoiding and hiding and denying, but decided against it.

"I meant it, when I said Adele did it," Aideen said. "I saw her and her crowd. . . They said they wanted me dead."

"Why didn't you tell the professors?" Angelus asked. "Surely they could do something to help you, or at least. . . I don't know, they could do something."

Aideen laughed bitterly. "I did. And just like with the Quodpot attack, they treated it like it didn't matter. I knew they would. No one cares, Angelus. Not even my parents, or my family, really. I don't have friends, or true family, or anyone. I'm alone."

She felt her entire body go ice-cold as she said that. Angelus took her hands into his.

"You really believe that? You're not alone," he said. "Kyla was trying to get a rise out of you—"

"But she's right," she said, trying to keep from crying. "My sisters didn't even defend me. Even they think— they must think that I'm cursed, that this is all my fault somehow."

"This isn't your fault," he said. "I promise, it isn't."

"It might not be," Aideen said. "But I have to make it right."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Angelus asked.

"I'll just have to try harder to prove what I know," Aideen said. She took in a deep breath. "Thank you, Angelus. I guess I feel a little less. . . Alone."

"You're not alone," he repeated.


	10. Chapter IX Steward Square

Aideen closed her eyes and breathed in the warm autumnal air. She had missed home greatly. Thanksgiving Break had just begun with the students returning home that afternoon. When she opened her eyes again, she cast a Hovering Charm on her trunk and allowed it to follow her down to the private sector of Steward Square. The pavilion which the three streets of houses turned off of were marked by a marble statue over a fountain of the Sayre-Steward family.

There was Isolt, with her wand and austere features, a hand entwined with cheerful, strong-looking James Steward, and the surly pukwudgie William fluttering beside them. On the sides stood Chadwick and Webster Boot in the first Ilvermorny robes, and Martha and Rionach were at the feet of the older ones, with Rionach holding a wand and Martha holding a bow.

Aideen turned onto Rionach Road, and walked down the cobblestone path to the house she'd spent her entire childhood in. She recognized hers as the house that her father painted light lavender, after her mother.

Freya and Belle still had more to do before they could go through the portal, so Aideen decided to go in a little early. With all that had happened at Ilvermorny that term, she needed to get away from the school.

She pushed open the gate into the front garden her father carefully cultivated and the trunk followed her to the door. She knocked on the door, and nothing happened. Aideen checked her watch and frowned. Her parents should have been home.

Before she could knock again, however, Lavender Graves opened the door. She was tall, and imposing, much like Freya, and Aideen wondered how she was genetically related to the dark-haired, austere Lavender when she was blonde and fair.

She knew it was the Scholt blood working there, but nonetheless, Aideen couldn't help but feel a little inferior to her mother and sisters and brother.

"Hello, Dee," Lavender said, her ruby lips curled into a smile. "I see your sisters haven't quite made the portal yet. Finn came just last night."

"Really?" Aideen brightened. She hugged her mother. "I missed you this quarter."

"I heard about your attacks," Lavender said, becoming serious. "I think we'll need to speak about this, no?"

"I agree," Aideen said.

"After dinner, when Belle's gone to bed," Lavender assured her, and she stepped aside to let her in the door.

Aideen nodded, and she jogged up the stairway and turned to left, where her room was. As soon as she stepped in it, she felt truly at home, at peace. She snapped her fingers and the trunk landed promptly at the foot of her bed.

She threw open her trunk and began unpacking. During this, she hadn't realized there was someone standing in her doorway. When she did, she turned to see a tall blonde young man in green and brown robes smiling and leaning against the doorway.

"Finn!" she cried happily as she hugged her older brother.

"Dee, you've gotten so much taller!" he cried, embracing her.

The two broke apart.

"I'm sure we've got a lot to talk about," Aideen said.

"We do," Finn said, twisting a ring on his finger.

"Are you married?" Aideen asked, looking down at the ring.

"Just engaged," Finn said with a laugh.

"Who's the lucky witch?" Aideen asked, a smile on her face.

"That would be me." A slim, slightly shorter than average woman with honey-colored have appeared, dressed in turquoise robes, her hands in the pockets.

"You remember Christine Booth, right?" Finn asked, looking from Aideen to Christine. "From school? She graduated from Thunderbird. She's about to be a Healer."

"Nice to meet you," Aideen said, offering her hand.

Christine shook it. "Nice to meet you as well. Finn's talked a lot about all your achievements."

"That's nice of him." Aideen was painfully aware of how awkward that sounded.

The two smiled at each other, making goo-goo eyes. Finn snapped out of it, noticing how uncomfortable Aideen was becoming.

"Let's let her get set in," Finn said, placing an arm around Christine. "It was nice seeing you, Dee."

"Bye," Aideen said, adding in a little tiny hand wave.

As soon as they had both left, Aideen got up and shut the door closed. She sat down relievedly on her bed.

Home had never been so welcome and yet so strange.

She lay back, staring at the ceiling slanted upwards. It was here that she missed Rionach the most. Rionach had never been to Ilvermorny, so at least her absence didn't feel quite so obvious. She half-expected her baby sister to rush in like she always did during vacations, demanding all the details of the school year so far.

Yet she was gone.

* * *

Aideen was relieved when the family dinner was over. Her father had never shown up— he sent an owl saying he was working late— Christine and Finn kept making googly eyes at each other and being overly sentimental, Freya was silent and surly, and Belle was loudly filling the awkward silence.

Everything was all wrong, and nothing was like it was before. Aideen left the dining room, and stepped out into the back porch, where Lavender grew a Potions-ingredients garden. The sight of the backyard made Aideen's heart pound against her chest.

All she could think was of Rionach, of that morning in the summer. It was almost as if she could see her sister's ghost walking down the steps of the back porch, through the grass, which had grown tall since her disappearance, and out the back gate.

Aideen felt a cold hand on her shoulder, and jumped and whirled around.

"No need to scream like a banshee," Lavender said dryly. She looked left and then right, before back to Aideen. "I think it's time we talked."

Aideen nodded, following her mother inside. Lavender ushered Aideen into the kitchen, shut the blinds, locked the door, and cast a few anti-snooping charms before turning to Aideen.

"I never wanted to tell any of my children about any of this," Lavender said. "You're going to want to sit down."

Aideen did so, her hands shaking slightly in anticipation as she sat in the chair. She clenched her hands around the chair, not wanting to reveal her nervousness.

"There was a case I took on a few months after you were born," Lavender began. "It was supposed to be an easy target, we saw some suspicious activity from some wizards on our watchlist. We busted a party— and we discovered a conspiracy."

"What kind?" Aideen asked.

"They're called the Dark Serpents," Lavender said. "They were a branch of sympathizers of the Dark Lord that came back from the dead that same year. They were looking for descendants of Isolt Sayre, because she was descended from Salazar Slytherin, like the Dark Lord was. They were going to take over the Wizarding World and eventually reveal magic to everyone."

Aideen's stomach dropped. "Is their symbol a really complicated drawing of a snake?"

Lavender's face paled as she nodded. "Then they really are after you."

"Why?" Aideen's heart pounded against her chest as the anticipation built. Lavender's calm tone was maddeningly slow, and she just wanted it over with and done.

"They wanted Rionach because she was powerful, and they could bend her to their will," Lavender said. "If she's still alive, she's one of them now. They also took her because they wanted a trade."

"A trade?" Aideen's blood went cold. "Not for me?"

"They did," Lavender said simply.

"But what's so special about me?" Aideen asked. "I'm just a really good student! And a goody-goody who couldn't hurt anyone."

Lavender shook her head, and let out a frustrated sigh. "You will be a powerful witch when you grow up, Aideen— but it's not just that."

Lavender then started to pace the room, running her hands through her dark hair and loosening strands from her airtight bun. She loudly sighed and fidgeted and paced, but said nothing— clearly in agony.

"What? Mom, what's going on?" Aideen asked, afraid. She'd never seen her mother so frustrated, so scared, so unsure. She thought if this continued for another second, her chest would explode, her heart was beating so hard.

"Aideen, I need you to tell me the truth," Lavender said, turning on her heel. Her dark eyes were fierce. "Can you speak Parseltongue?"

Aideen hesitated only a moment before nodding. She felt frozen, her face felt numb.

"Have you ever wondered why?" Lavender asked.

Aideen shook her head. She could barely breathe, she was so scared of what was about to come out of her mother's full ruby lips next.

Lavender turned her heel and paced again. She placed her hands together in front of her mouth, as if in prayer. She turned on her heel again, turning to face Aideen.

"I never wanted to tell you this way," Lavender said. She paused. "You're descended from Slytherin— but not Isolt. You came from a different Gaunt, down the line. Your mother was a descendant of Merlin Emrys himself."

"What do you mean? You're my mother," Aideen said, her voice rising in a panic.

Lavender sadly shook her head. "Not by blood. We found you at that party— and we Obliviated your siblings and modified their memories so they would never know that you weren't always ours."

Aideen felt lighter than air, colder than ice. She stumbled out her chair.

"I have to go. . ."

She reached for the doorknob to the kitchen, only to remember her mother had locked it. She looked back to Lavender, her knees shaking and her head spinning.

"Please let me out," she whined.

"Aideen, I'm sorry, but you need to understand, you can't tell anyone," Lavender said, her voice still infuriatingly calm and slow.

"I understand, now open the door!" Aideen snarled.

Lavender sighed and waved her wand. Aideen raced outside, through the garden gate, into the street. She kept running until she came across the statue with the Sayre-Steward family.

She stumbled, taken aback by the realization that was _her_ family.

She took off again, entering the business section. She ran into one of the back alleys, where her legs turned to jelly and she fell onto the cobblestones. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she was crying so hard she could barely breathe.

Everything was different now.


	11. Chapter X For the Love of Angelus Quill

Aideen didn't know how long she just lay there, crying in the back alley. She didn't know how much had time had passed when she heard footsteps coming. Panic shot through her veins as she realized that she left her wand at home, and she tried to stop crying, so she could at least see.

The fear, however, just caused her to start crying all over again. Everything seemed hopeless right then and there. She was the reason Rionach was taken. And the other children who disappeared were being taken by the Dark Serpents. It all clicked into place. The only question left was how Kyla Grimsditch got involved. Her crowd would do whatever she wanted, but how would a Pureblood from one of the Original Twelve families end up in an evil society?

But did it matter? It was all still Aideen's fault.

"Aideen? Is that you?"

Her head snapped up to see Angelus Quill standing in the alleyway in front of her, with four friends, older students who weren't part of the Quidditch or Quodpot teams.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he crouched down to her level.

Aideen shook her head. "I can't tell you that."

"Come on, you don't have to keep it a secret," Angelus coaxed. "What's wrong? I want to help."

Aideen shook her head. "You can't help with this. No one can. And I promised my mother I wouldn't tell anyone."

Angelus hesitated, unsure of how to continue. "Well, we were about to go to the Silver Shoes Dance Club. Want to come with? We could have a little fun, forget about what's bothering you?"

Now it was Aideen's turn to hesitate. She was the good girl, the golden girl. She didn't just run off to party whenever she felt like it. That wasn't who she was.

 _But you aren't a Graves-Scholt anymore, either,_ she reminded herself. _You don't even know yourself at all._

Besides, she didn't feel like going back home. That was where everything would become real, when she couldn't run from her blood, or Rionach's disappearance, or any of it.

She nodded, and Angelus offered her a hand. She accepted, getting to her feet, and slapped a weak smile on her face.

"Thank you," she said.

"Don't worry," Angelus said, smiling at her, then glancing back at his friends. "We'll take care of you."

That made Aideen's smile a little more genuine.

"These are my closest buddies, Murray, he's one of my roommates—" a boy with red hair and blue eyes waved jovially—"And then there's Hector, he's a Pukwudgie—" another boy with rosy brown skin and thick dark hair winked— "Séptima's a Thunderbird, she's also Hector's girlfriend—" the pretty Latina holding Hector's hand grinned—"And this is Crystal, Séptima's roommate," Angelus finished, as a pretty blonde smiled and gave a tiny finger wave. "This is Aideen. You know her from the Quodpot and Quidditch team."

"And everything else she's in," Murray said, rolling his eyes playfully.

"You should hear him go on and on about you, bonita," Hector said. "And on, and on, and—"

Angelus's cheeks flushed, and Crystal laughed, her voice as bubbly and light as the Horned Serpent's stream that ran through the campus.

"Don't embarrass him like this," Crystal said. "Come on, Aid, let's go party!"

* * *

The Silver Shoes Club was nothing like what Aideen expected. Pixies floated about in the mostly dark club, allowing for atmospheric lighting. The ceiling was a display of the stars above, but with fireworks in many colors and patterns shooting across. Everyone received a commemorative wizard's hat upon entering that caused the music to adjust to whatever the wearer wanted to hear. The walls were a reflective silver, making the party seem infinite and eternal.

"Come on, let's get something to drink and eat, then we'll dance," Angelus said.

Aideen stayed close to the older teens, even though the club appeared to be for teenagers and young adults. Just because she wanted to forget the dangers that had still happened didn't mean she couldn't. And she was still wandless.

So for sometime, Aideen enjoyed the bottomless Color-Changing French Fries the group had ordered, and a virgin Butterbeer Angelus had gotten for her. She kept apologizing for not having any money on her, but the entire group insisted on paying for her.

"Besides, if we can help Angelus have a little game," Hector said with a shrug before Séptima shut him up.

Just eating something made the giant cold pit of dread Aideen felt her stomach fill up. It filled up even more when Angelus hopped off a stool, and offered Aideen a hand, and the music slowed down to a Celestina Warbeck ballad.

"Do you hear it too?" Aideen asked nervously.

"The Celestina Warbeck?" Angelus asked. "Yeah. You hear it too?"

"Yeah," Aideen said breathlessly, stepping off of the stool. He pulled her close, until they were inches apart.

For a few minutes, they swayed and twirled to the music, in their own world.

"So you like me?" Aideen asked. "Like, like-like me?"

"Yeah," Angelus said, frowning slightly. "Why wouldn't I? You're so smart and talented! I just don't know if you feel the same way—and you don't have to. None of this is about me, you know. It's all about you."

"Well, I like-like you, too," Aideen said.

Angelus broke out into a relieved grin, but Aideen hesitated.

"I just want to take this slowly," Aideen said. "Just take my time, you know?"

"Of course," Angelus said. "If that's what you want—"

The beat came on to a quicker-paced song as Hector twirling Séptima outwards in a dramatic tango nearly knocked the two apart.

"¡Lo siento!" Héctor called.

"Come on, dance with us!" Crystal called, clapping and swaying her hips.

Angelus looked to Aideen. "We'd better join them, shouldn't we?"

"I think we should," Aideen agreed.

* * *

She didn't remember how long they had been dancing as a group when the top of the club exploded. From somewhere in the crowd, sparks shot up to the ceiling, blowing it away to where several witches and wizards were floating above on brooms, casting dark hexes into the crowds above.

Aideen and Angelus dived behind the bar, and Aideen looked among her new friends.

"Can I borrow someone's wand?" she asked.

"What, why?" Murray asked.

"I left mine at home, it was a heat-of-the-moment thing," Aideen said. "I can fight them off!"

"No, you can't," Angelus said gently. "You're not as good at dueling, remember?"

"I can't just sit here and let them die!" Aideen protested, wincing as the impact of the spells rumbled through the floor. "Not when it's my fault!"

"It's not your fault," Hector said.

"Are you using a Time-Turner to attack the place right now?" Crystal asked. "Because if you're not, then none of this is your fault— it's theirs!"

Aideen screwed her eyes shut, the truth burning at her heart, fighting to get out.

"It's my fault because they're here for me!" Aideen cried.

"We won't let them take you," Angelus promised, laying a hand on her knee.

"Sí, we're going to lie low and stay together," Séptima promised. "All for one and one for all. That's what friends do."

Aideen nodded. "How long before the Aurors get here, you think?"

"Can't be too long," Murray said. "Your parents are Aurors, right?"

"Yeah," Aideen said, her voice hollow.

It was then that Aurors burst in, and a true firefight began. Duels were everywhere, and Aideen thought more than once that she was going to die in the Silver Shoes Club.

But she didn't. And Lavender Graves was the first to check behind the bar.

"Aideen!" she cried. "You're safe! Thank Merlin, I was so scared—"

"I'm alright," Aideen said, dusting off her skirt, and rising to her feet. She looked back to Angelus and his friends. "I was just with some friends, having a good time. They kept me safe."

"Good, good," Lavender said, embracing her daughter. "I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you after—"

"I love you Mom," Aideen lied.

* * *

 **AN: It's been a while since I've updated, hasn't it? Sorry about that.**


	12. Chapter XI Student Archives

"We got your owl," Rhys said as she hurried with the other two in tow into the Student Archives section of the library. "Why did you want us in here?"

"Things have changed," Aideen said curtly as she stared at the wall of drawers, organized by year. "We need genealogy records."

"Why?" Rhys asked.

"Mother told me about the organization who the Aurors believe are behind all of this," Aideen said. "The Dark Serpents— they're looking for descendants of Salazar Slytherin in America, or particularly strong witches and wizards. So we need to see if any of the students who disappeared are descended from Slytherin."

"What?" Even Ondine was blinking rapidly in surprise.

"You're kidding," Saga accused.

Aideen shook her head. "And they want me because of the reasons you said, I'm a powerful witch. And the daughter of the Aurors that killed some of their leaders years ago."

"So revenge and not wanting you in their way," Ondine muttered. "Of course."

"Yeah," Aideen said.

Saga tilted her head to the side. "Are you sure that's all there is to it?"

"I'm sure," Aideen said, her voice rising slightly.

"There's something you're not telling us," Saga said. "I can tell."

"You're wrong," Aideen said curtly. "I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with that. Now, are you going to help me or not?"

"What's wrong?" Rhys asked. "You're different."

Aideen took a deep breath. "I was attacked again in Steward's Square."

"Oh no," Rhys said. "I heard about what happened in the Silver Shoes Club."

"Why were you there?" Ondine asked.

"I was invited, by Angelus," Aideen said, a blush rising to her cheeks. "He and his friends wanted to invite me out for a fun time."

"No way!" Rhys cried.

"Was that your gentleman friend?" Ondine asked coyly.

"Maybe," Aideen said, smirking a little.

Saga rolled her eyes. "Can we please be serious?"

"You're the one who wanted to know about my personal life," Aideen reminded her. "Chill out, Saga."

Saga bit her lip, but instead looked up to the records. "Are you sure that would be in the student archives?"

"I know about a genealogy project Christine Booth made, specifically a book that would generate the family tree for any student who attended Ilvermorny," Aideen said. "I know also for a fact she kept records that she donated to the library on where she left the thing and how to use it, as well as its limits."

"Christine Booth graduated in 2006," Ondine said. "So we're looking for the B's for 2006!"

Ondine then clapped her hands, and one of the lower drawers pulled itself open for the Unicorn Club to peruse its contents.

"Nice," Aideen said.

Ondine preened. "Father showed me how to do that when I was seven years old visiting him on weekends at Ilvermorny. I've spent a lot of time in this castle."

Aideen reached into the drawer, looking through files until she found it. _Booth, Christine, Book of Trees._ "Got it!"

She pulled it triumphantly out of the drawer, and pulled it open. After the title page, there was one for "Instructions."

Aideen cleared her throat and read aloud, "To use this book, simply announce the family name you would like to research, or the student. The pages will flip to the right place and will go as far back as you request, as long as a descendant came from Ilvermorny."

"So do we use the Slytherin name, or the Sayre?" Rhys asked.

"Neither," Aideen said. "Gaunt family tree, please!"

The book flipped itself through several pages, before settling on one. The edge of the page unfurled, growing until it was rolling halfway down the isle.

"Stop at Gormlaith Gaunt's generation," Aideen ordered. After a few more inches of paper, the page stopped growing.

"That's a lot of paper," Rhys muttered.

Aideen shifted the weight of most of the book onto one arm, and pulled her wand out of the pocket in her cobalt cardigan, pointing it at the book.

" _Wingardium leviosa,_ " Aideen said.

The book lifted itself up and floated to a table, so the entire trail of paper was on it, dominating it completely. Aideen put her wand away, feeling the small satisfaction she always felt whenever she cast a spell or brewed a potion.

"Is there any way we can make this shorter?" Saga asked, staring at the mass of ink and names. "Can it like, highlight the students attending Ilvermorny right now?"

To everyone's surprise, several names lit up on the registry. Ondine stepped forward, her unblinking cold blue eyes taking in each and every one with ruthless efficiency.

"All of the kids on the list were taken," Ondine said. "Some kids who were are missing aren't here. But there are two who weren't taken. . . one of them is Adele Owens."

Her eyes met Aideen's, and she felt a chill run down her spine. Ondine knew the truth now. And Adele was one of her many cousins.

"Who is the other one?" Saga asked, suspicion shifting in her green eyes.

"Why don't you let her tell you?" Ondine said, staring straight into Aideen's soul. Rhys and Saga turned to look at her.

"Oh no," Saga murmured, already reaching for her wand.

"I only just found out, over break," Aideen protested. "I didn't know! No one but Mother, Father, and I know!"

"They're after you not just because you're a good student, but because you're one of their snakes!" Saga said.

"Yes," Aideen admitted.

"Why didn't you tell us that?" Rhys demanded.

"Because she's a friendless coward," a voice said. The girls froze as Kyla Grimsditch and Adele Owens walked out from behind a bookcase.


	13. Chapter XII The Unicorn

Aideen immediately drew her wand, drawing herself up to her full height— which wasn't saying much.

"What do you want, Owens?" Aideen asked.

"I've come to take you in," Adele said. "I can't have you ruining my plans."

"Our plans," Kyla corrected as she pointed her wand at the book. "You know too much. And you're popular with the teachers, so they'll listen to you. If you tell them the truth, they'll believe you. And then the Dark Serpents will be forced to retaliate."

"How?" Aideen demanded. "You already took my sister from me!"

"Rionach is a mere pawn in all of this," Adele said. "Yes, she's powerful, but there are plenty of more powerful young witches and wizards in our master's dungeon. The real reason we took her was because of you. Because you have a choice, now."

"Surrender now, and Rionach lives," Kyla said. "If you choose to fight, to continue to defy us, we'll kill her."

Aideen wavered for just a moment, and then she dropped her wand. She held her hands up. "Don't hurt my sister. I'll come quietly."

"We won't."

Saga raised her wand, and the fight began. Aideen didn't know what happened or why, or even what spells were flying about. All she knew was that she fell into a bookshelf, knocking it over.

First Rhys fell, then Ondine. But Saga was putting up a good fight against the two witches. Aideen could only watch in horror. Then Saga turned to see that Aideen was still there.

"Run!" she screamed.

Aideen obeyed, and ran. She ran out of the library, and saw men and women in cloaks bearing the Dark Serpents' symbol marching down the halls.

She had to keep running. So she did, out to the hidden gate where the Unicorn Club had been given access to the Hide-Behind Wood. Without a torch or any protection as the sun started to sink behind the twisted trees, Aideen ran into the relative safety of the woods.

* * *

She only stopped when she fell into a river. Her tights ripped, and her skirt was soaked, as well as her cloak. She suddenly was freezing, especially as the sun had long since disappeared from the sky.

It happened too quickly. The Dark Serpents had taken the school.

 _At least there's a survivor,_ she thought. _Me_.

She started to sob. Why did she deserve to go free when she was the one that the Dark Serpents wanted? Why did everyone keep giving and giving to her?

She cried for Rionach, who was at the mercy of these monsters.

She cried for Ondine, Rhys, and Saga, who didn't deserve to get caught up in her mess.

She cried for her family, and how they'd lied to protect her.

She cried for the kids who went missing.

But must of all, she cried for Angelus, who deserved this least of all. He was good, so good.

That was when she felt the point gently jab her shoulder.

Gasping, Aideen looked up to see a unicorn poking her shoulder. Instantly, she felt a bit more calm, and in pure awe of the marvelous being before her.

 _I understand your pain. Let us mourn._

"You talked to me!" Aideen saw a glimmer of wisdom in the silvery-white horse's black eyes.

 _I want to help._

"How can you?" Aideen asked.

 _Get on my back, and I will show you._

Aideen hesitated, only for a moment. "Thank you."

She got to her feet, and climbed atop the majestic white horse. She leaned in and whispered, "I don't have a wand."

 _I can help with that._

The unicorn approached a tree on the bank of the stream, and tapped a spiny twig at the end of the branch. The touch made it turn spiral-shaped and silvery. Just as Aideen grabbed it, it detached from the tree. Aideen twirled it about in her hand.

 _Come, we have plenty to do_.

"Why can I understand you?" Aideen asked.

 _Merlin Emrys was one of Slytherin's descendants,_ the unicorn explained. _He somehow not only had the ability to talk to snakes, but also to all living creatures._

"So my mom could do that, too," Aideen realized.

 _Correct. All of the Emrys-Gaunt line could. Now, we must save your school!_

"Right," Aideen muttered.


	14. Chapter XIII Yellow Bird

As Aideen and the unicorn rode into the castle, she noticed that the unicorn seemed to be sapping the strength of the dark wizards, and giving more strength to the magic of resisting students and teachers.

All around her, Aideen saw hope restored to Ilvermorny, after such a shadow had fallen over it.

She only hope that whatever the unicorn had in mind for driving the Dark Serpents out of her school, that she would have the strength to do it.

The unicorn led her through the library, where Ondine, Rhys, and Saga were still fighting.

Aideen jumped off of the unicorn's back and drew her brand new wand.

"This is between you and me, Adele," Aideen said.

Adele didn't look up, but Kyla did.

"You were always too meddlesome for your own good," Kyla muttered. "Too bad for Rionach. Then again, after your little running-away-stunt, I was forced to tell our master that you had chosen your life over your sister's."

Aideen felt as if she'd been punched in the gut. She stumbled forward, doubling over. It couldn't be real— it just couldn't—

Red fury filled her vision, and she screamed out every hex she could think of. All she wanted was to make Kyla pay for what she had done. While Kyla was managing to defend herself, her shields were wearing down, and she was being backed further and further into a corner.

"Flipendo!" Aideen roared.

Kyla went flying back into the bookshelf, breaking it and sending several bookshelves on her head.

With a running leap, Aideen landed on top of her, and raised her wand to do something awful, something—

Something like what they'd done to her.

As soon as the thought was complete, Aideen lowered her wand in shame.

"Stupefy."

Kyla went unconscious, and Aideen heard footsteps behind her.

"For once, you're right," Adele said. "This is between you and me."

Aideen rose to her feet. "Then we should duel like proper witches and wizards."

Adele shrugged. "It makes no real difference to me. My master will reward me for taking you out. They wanted you captured and subdued, but I knew that you were more than even Kyla Grimsditch estimated. You have a strong will, Graves-Scholt. We could never have broken you."

"Because I'm already broken," Aideen said, a sadness in her eyes. "Why Rionach? Why?"

"Because we made a deal," Adele said. "Now, let's not just talk, shall we?"

But before Aideen could raise her wand, several gold glowing ropes came from behind the bookshelf. Aideen cast. A spell for one, herself, and immediately Adele was restrained.

Ondine, Saga, and Rhys came from around the bookshelf.

"You lasted a lot longer than I thought you would," Aideen admitted.

"We don't go down so easy," Saga said.

There was an awkward silence.

"Do you trust me now?" Aideen asked, gesturing to the unicorn.

"Yes," Saga exhaled.

"We're with you till the end," Rhys said, linking arms with Ondine and Saga.

Ondine blinked unnervingly. "Always."

"Then it's time for us to save the school."

Within moments, they had a plan. All they had to do was get to the Owlry, and summon the Aurors. That was all they would have to do.

With Saga on horseback, she would distract the Dark Serpents. Rhys would run alongside her, using one of the magical torches as a weapon.

As for Ondine and Aideen, they started down a secret passageway that Ondine had discovered as a little girl, living on the grounds of the castle.

"Ilvermorny's never seen an invasion on this scale," Ondine said. "We don't know what we'll find."

They crawled out from behind a statue. There was no one on the floor of the aviary.

"We'd best get this battle over with," Aideen sighed.

The aviary at Ilvermorny was a giant golden birdcage, essentially, with only charms to protect from the cold and the rain. And naturally, the night of the Battle of Ilvermorny, there was rain and a proper thunderstorm.

As Aideen's eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized in a flash that it wouldn't be as easy as she thought.

They weren't alone.

There was a man in a dark cloak, holding a wand to an unconscious boy's head.

When lightning turned night today, it illuminated Angelus Quill as the unconscious boy.

"Put him down," Aideen commanded.

"Ah, I'm afraid not, Graves-Scholt," the dark man said. "I've already taken one thing of value from you. I'd hate to take another."

"My sister is not a thing, and neither is he," Aideen said. "It's me you want, take me instead."

"No, you can't join them," Ondine said, refusing to lower her wand. "Angelus wouldn't want this. Your sister wouldn't want this."

"This is the only way," Aideen said, looking over her shoulder. Then she winked.

Ondine's expression faltered in confusion.

Then Aideen used the gift she'd learned about from the unicorn.

Owls, attack this man— but don't harm Angelus— please!

The effect was instantaneous. Hundreds upon hundreds of owls opened their eyes and flew at the dark man, clawing at him. He dropped his wand in pain and pure terror, and stumbled backward out of the aviary— falling off of the parapet.

Angelus Quill fell to the floor, and Aideen rushed to his side. She then looked to Ondine.

"We have to get the message, now!"

Ondine was quick to write, and gave it tot the only owl Aideen trusted for the job— Freya's.

Once it had been sent, they locked themselves in the Aviary, until the Aurors came to save them.


	15. Chapter XIV The Book of Potions

Aideen returned to the Graves-Scholt house after the funeral.

By interrogating the many Dark Serpents that had been captured in the Battle of Ilvermorny, the group had discovered one of the safeholds of the Dark Serpents. In it, the body of Rionach Graves-Scholt had been recovered.

Throughout the entire funeral, people stared at her and whispered. But she wasn't close enough to hear what they were saying.

Did they think it was her fault?

Lavender Graves had been insistent that it wasn't.

"I would have lost you both, had you gone with Adele Owens," Lavender said. "And your friends made it impossible for you to comply. You still saved the school. I'm happy I still have one of my girls when I could have lost two."

But everyone— except Angelus Quill and the Unicorn Club— were avoiding her.

In the aftermath of the battle, someone had leaked to the New York Ghost the details of Aideen's true parentage.

Finn and Freya were treating her now as if she was some sort of alien creature. No longer their sister.

They had lost two sisters that day.

"Hey, it's going to be alright."

Aideen turned around from her suitcase to see Angelus. She felt a pang of regret when she saw the scar from where the dark warlock had jabbed him in the temple with a wand on accident, while being attacked by the owls.

"I guess the fact that I qualified for the International Potions Competition is probably a good thing," Aideen said as she ran her hand through his hair. "I can throw myself into that. Stay away from Ilvermorny for a little while, let everything settle down."

"Well, just make sure to write to me," Angelus said. "It's a little weird, already taking this long-distance. Are you this fast with all your boyfriends?"

For the first time since Rionach's death, she laughed, and broke away from him gently.

"I have to pack," she said.

"Can I at least help?"

"Sure," Aideen said. "Just sit on the bed, where Mother can see you from."

As Angelus did what Aideen suggested, he glanced out the open door to see that Lavender Graves's office had an open door as well. She was sitting at her desk, and watching him with a pair of omnoculars.

"Extra precaution," Aideen said. "I think she's a little jumpy, realizing I could've gone the same way as my parents."

That was a new fact to contend with as well.

Lying in the bottom of her trunk, the only thing that Aideen had bothered to pack, was the case file about the Emrys-Gaunt line.

Her real name was supposed to be in there.

She hadn't gotten the courage to read much more than her birth certificate.

Her name was Esmerelda Gaunt.

Her father had taken her mother's surname.

That was all she could stomach to know.

"Whoever they were, they may have been the mother and father, but they weren't your parents," Angelus said. "The Dark Serpents value blood— but they're wrong, Aideen. Blood doesn't matter. The bonds we make do."

Aideen smiled. "I guess so."

After all, she wasn't related by blood to any of the people that mattered to her. But they did matter. That was undeniable.

She used her wand to put in some Ilvermorny skirt and sweater sets, as well as every bit of dress robes she had. Some jewelry, her cauldron, and the apothecary ingredients all went in. The last thing on top were three pictures.

One was of her and Angelus— taken earlier that morning by Christine Booth.

One was old, a photograph of her and Rionach laughing at the Christmas party for the Auror department.

The last one was of her and the unicorn club.

As she locked her trunk and kissed her new boyfriend goodbye— just for a little while— Aideen Graves-Scholt-Gaunt stepped into a new future.


End file.
